A baby is born, its first breath,
a cry deep from its belly,
catapulted by its diaphragm,
launches into the world.
Blood flushes its cheeks. Joy.
A person dies, their last breath,
a gasp from the throat,
emptied by the bellows of the lungs,
seeps shallow into the world.
Blood drains from the cheeks. Grief.
In between, a life,
impermanence and uncertainty.
Sunrises and moonsets,
sunsets and moonrises,
we wake and sleep,
tides ebb and flow.
The earth rotates,
revolves around the sun.
Seasons change,
we work and play,
laugh and cry,
love and hate.
…and everything in between,
from dreaming to regretting,
holding on to letting go,
from learning to forgetting,
remembering to forgiving.
This is life, distilled.
…and in this moment,
I am broken open,
in awe of this gift,
grateful for what exists
in between
each inhalation and exhalation.
LLL
06/14/2017