When the sheets of clear blue water
break relentlessly over and under me
so that I am immersed; out of my depth.
With my heart pounding in me like when
the nurse just slapped breath into me.
That’s when I’m truly alive.
And when the dream still lingers
above me when the morning sun
hits my blankets, in that state of blissful
oblivion, like when nightmares run
in fear of daybreak. For my friend,
Who shades the burning sun of
Aloneness. When my family
Laugh at the dinner table.
If the note of our song,
brings the pain of tears in my throat.
Or the crumpled picture is held dear, breaking
in my hand. Like when you showed me
your deepest secrets, and the lifelines on your palm.
The silence when you know it’s coming,
and the room and the world erupts in applause.
When the person who has been hiding,
in the wings for all those years, finally steps
forward, and covers your eyes with their hands,
to say those immortal words:
"I’m going to turn your world upside down."
For that girl. For that boy. For the kiss.
When you take that moment, with the sky
above you and the solid ground beneath you,
and realize that you are the smallest and biggest
thing to ever greet the world and change it.
That is when we are truly alive.
