I’m Thankful That We’re Both Alive at the Same Time…

I’m thankful that we’re both alive at the same time,
for if the chasm of an instant were to separate us,
a moan would divide both joy and hope with a knife
and both hearts would not beat in my lines.

I’m thankful that we’re both alive on the same earth
and, like two stars in a well, we both merge a You-and-I.
It is a gift to see the other in oneself, our supplies
in a kind of forest where only melodies thrive.

I’m thankful that we’re both alive in the same life, for
a different life could certainly be the life of a worm.
And pray body to body, a prayer to one another,
while thunder rattles over us with its chains.

I’m thankful that we’re both alive with the same death, like neighbors,
a sign that he is here in this house: his light in the window.
I’m thankful that we’re both alive separate in one
and know well: of all neighbors, this one is most near.