“William Penn would be a great pen name. But for love letters to manicured lawns, trees, and benches, the best name would be Nicholas Parks.”

“I think I’d want to be a tree,” I told him, finally.“A tree? Why’s that?”“Because. Everyone loves a tree.”“Ah.” He nodded. “I see.”“So, what about you? What would you want to be?”“Well, considering your answer, I suppose I’d want to be a boy, sitting on park bench somewhere beside a tree named Nicole.”

“A great band name would be Tickling Whiskers. Especially if the lead singer is a cat. I’d love to audition for backup dancer.”

“Making benches is no walk in the park. It takes one a lot of love to make a bench, and then it takes two to make love on that bench.”

“The park was littered with couples kissing behind trees and making out on park benches. And paper stars were everywhere; in trees, on the ground, above heads, inside mouths… It was like Valentine’s Day.On crack.”

“I renamed myself Ari.If I switched the letter, my name was Air.I thought it might be a great thing to be the air.I could be something and nothing at the same time. I could be necessary and also invisible. Everyone would need me and no one would be able to see me.”