On the Heaviness of Life

The atmosphere is pushing in around me

from dogfoose.com

as I speak and write and sit here in my chair.
For each square foot, a ton, and that's a lot
of pressure to exert on someone who is simply
trying to be happy, to stay true to who she is,
avoiding drama and entanglements of anger.
The fact that I have locked within my ample frame
a fine supply of air myself explains
why I can stand at all. But if I fall, I hope that
you'll be close enough to help me up. I can't
trust everyone, of course, to see me stumble,
even care that I have landed on the ground,
but you, I trust and love. I'm keeping you around
for that (and other) reasons despite the current
stormy season when the pressure of the air
and life seems heavier than normal, and that's
saying quite a lot.




(c) Ellen Gillette, 2014