In each other, let us see ourselves.
—Alberto Ríos, “Who Has Need, I Stand with You”
Sometimes when I look in the mirror,
my eyes see only my own reflection.
I forget to see the eyes of my mother,
and her mother, and her mother.
I forget to see the eyes of my sisters
who live in other towns, other countries.
I forget to see the eyes of my brothers
who teach, who fight, who rule, who beg.
I forget how my heart is fueled
by the same electric impulse
that drives every other beating heart.
I forget how my skin is made and remade
from the same carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen
that comprises every other human’s skin.
Oh, to remember. Not just when I look in the mirror,
but when I walk down the street.
Not just when I feel drawn to another,
but also when I feel defensive, averse.
Oh, to remember the strange and certain math
that seven point seven five three billion people
equal one cohesive expression
of what it means to be alive.
Your hands, my hands. Your breath, my breath.
Your eyes in my eyes. My eyes in your eyes.
This life, ours.