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"What exactly was it that convinced you?"
Two people stand at the midpoint of a bridge. They speak for a moment and then come to a realization. They cannot remember which way they were travelling on the bridge. They know that they came towards each other and had been travelling in different directions. Now they have a choice. There are four possibilities. They can go off together or alone in a direction of their chosing.
They decided to build a fire
For they could not choose
And so they sat there, at the center of the bridge, warming themselves by the fire. They talked and they found they had much in common. There were things they could learn from each other. There were things they could teach each other. Because they had time, and because they were trying to avoid making a decision about which way to cross the bridge, they were willing to listen. They heard the words that were spoken and they spoke the truth. The truth in their words made the decision come easier. They would go off in different directions and never speak again. Too much was given and they had opened themselves too cleanly. At the center of the bridge, nothing could hurt them, but once they crossed the bridge, things would change. They knew this and accepted it.
"Take it slow.
I can't let you go quite yet.
We still have time.
Soon everything will change."
A moment in time, captured out of the realm and beyond anyone's capacity to overstrike. There would later be denials. They stepped outside the roles they played in the lives they knew, but here, at the center of the bridge, they could be themselves. This was the place where dreams begin. This was the place where the soul ascended, for a brief time, before the cold streets and the empty faces convinced them to return to the roles that were so familiar.
"I must not forget how to wear this mask."
The fear of revealing the true self is not a misplaced fear. To do so requires great strength and confidence. Peeling away layers of fabric towards exposing the deeper, true nudity of the soul, can leave one feeling barren and defenseless. Within each layer, revealed carefully to a select few, lies another layer. Darkness and light entwine and the deeper we go, the harder it is to discern the difference. The deeper the wound, the more delicate the element, the less control we have over emotional responses. If we prick you, then you will bleed, but not all bleeding is visible to the naked eye.
Two travellers meet on a bridge.
They shake hands, nod pleasantries, and then continue on their way.
This is the way of things.
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