I found Natalie Pleitez’s poem “when I said I love you” very moving because of the way she explains it. I know how it feels to say I love you but to explain the feeling is difficult for me. She said “cracked open before my feet” and to me that was basically saying that she was freaking out and maybe in that moment she regretted it. Saying those three words may have frightened her and caused her to imagine the grouch opening up and swallowing her. The feeling of saying those three words and not saying them is basically the same fear. Because you might be scared to get rejected but you may also feel like things could of been different. I would like to thank you Natalie for writing this and giving me an opportunity to read it and finally have a way to explain to someone how it feels when those three words leave my lips.