The Air I Breathe

Relationship: Connection or link; The way in which two or more concepts, objects, or people are connected.

I am convinced, a vital part of our living is formed by our relationships with those around us and beyond. Everyone with whom I interact has a relationship with me, and I with them, the depth of which is determined by how they affect me. Some of these can be toxic. Many can be and are benign. But, there are those few which are core touching relationships. It is of these I speak the following:

The Air I Breathe

I knew we were vitally connected

I did not fathom the depth

But it should come as no surprise

You are the deepest and longest connection

I have, or had, in my life

Our connection began at conception

I was little more than a biological spark

I was the convergence of two 

In the ampulla of the fallopian tube

A single piercing

An arduous journey

A chamber embedding

An explosion of life 

And our relationship began

For months, a few shy of a year

Our relationship grew

I was growing 

Surrounded by a wash 

Of myriad sounds and sensations

But, never far from the sound

Of one solitary heartbeat

Growth occurred rather quickly

Then, at the right time

You gave me a new world

New sounds, new sights, new everything

And especially, new relationships

From then until now

Through the good and the bad

Through the joy and the sorrow

Through the highs and the lows

Through relationships beginning and ending

Ours has changed and grown, but remained constant

In other relationships

At times, there were questions

Of perseverance and permanence 

In this, my oldest and dearest relationship

These questions never surfaced

There is not enough time in a lifetime 

To write down all the lessons you taught

To showcase all the shining examples 

To commemorate all the important occasions

Based on, or being part of this

My oldest relationship

Then, without warning or preparation

One moment, here

The next moment, gone

It is as if

The strength has been drained from my body

The light has been stolen from the sky

The air has been sucked out of the room

This relationship

This lifelong interaction

This intricately interwoven thread

From conception until now

Irrevocably altered

Tied so deeply to my strength

Attached so strongly to my sunshine

Such a part of my every breath

For this moment

I am lost

I am adrift 

I am alone 

In a crowd

In time I will see

While dramatically changed

The relationship is still there

And will continue until it is my turn to go

Days will come

I will hear a familiar heartbeat

You will be my strength

You will be my light

You will be the air I breathe

Ron Simpson Jr.

August 27, 2018