Both And

If we lived in an Either Or world, 

I would miss the pink shimmer of the brightening sunrise and the orange glow of the sunset on the horizon.

I would miss the dappled sunlight through the leaves of a shady oak and all the colors of the rainbow as sunbeams burst through rain clouds.

If we lived in an Either Or world, 

I would miss the exhilaration of the building crescendo in the music, and the satisfying weave of the threads at the denouement of the story.

I would miss the rough whiskers of a soft kiss, and the release of happy tears.

If we lived in an Either Or world, 

I might stagnate, full of hubris at my own perfection, or defeated by self-doubt.

I might stunt the growth  future possibilities with the false love of exaggerated praise or the cynical erosion of constant criticism.

If we lived in an Either Or world,

I would miss the rich textures of our experience, the invigorating climb to the highest peaks and the lessons of the struggles through the deepest valleys. 

I would miss the beauty in the kaleidoscope of our lives, mine and yours, different and the same, coming together and pulling apart and then crossing again through time and place.

I prefer a Both And world. 

I like the drowsy in-between of awake and asleep and the still suspension of the gray mist.

I like the busy quiet of the early morning, the birds singing their greetings and the squirrels scampering to gather their breakfast while I sip my coffee.

I like Both And.

I want to experience momentary nighttime in the middle of the day during a solar eclipse and all the colors of a black night during an aurora borealis. 

I want to float in the ebb and flow of the tides of life, pulling me under and out to sea and then lifting me up to carry me toward shore, swimming and not swimming to stay afloat.

I can live and grow with Both And.

I can discover and develop my unique gifts, and acknowledge and work to improve my shortcomings.

I can appreciate and lift up what is good and right, and question and work to fix what is broken and harmful.

I want the contradictions.

I want to look beneath your smile and your tears, your trendy fashion and your rumpled hand-me-downs, to learn all the complexities of your story, the histories that shaped you and your dreams for the future.

I want the simple and the complicated, the beautiful and the messy, the science and the mystery.

I want to breathe in and live out all the colors and the notes and the intrigue of the world.