A moment in which we

sigh and shake our heads

at the wonder of still 

being here.

It’s hard to explain to 

those who still avoid it all.

But I can tell that you 

know. I can see it in your 

eyes on the street, when 

we look at each other 

for that extra second.

I can tell when we’re 

waiting for the light 

to change and you shrug

with a crooked smile, as 

if to say, “It’s all beautiful

and terrible and we keep

landing in the middle.”

~Mark Nepo

all the things I’ve never known…

inquiry for today~ call it all home….

when will we see again?

Happy families,
Unhappy families.
All the same, right?
Ach. ach. ach.

To begin
You are born.
To a long line of ancestors
who are long gone
but still yell or whisper
in your ear
in the depths of night.
A game of telephone played
from one generation to the next.

Garbled and confused.
Glimmers of light.
Misunderstandings.
Errors.

And now, here you are.
With the ones you love.
Or the ones you don’t.

The ones you cannot live without.
The ones you would like to smite.

Those who have disappointed you
or betrayed you. Those who have
been kinder than you deserve. And
the kind ones who inevitably die.
And leave you feeling very much
alone. They are what you have.

And if you think, at any given point,
that you know what is going on,
you are sorely mistaken.

And yet.

~Maira Kalman