Shaking, my eyes could not turn away,

I wondered about

that moment

that life

that reason

that simple arrival without warning,

her wishing no one might know any more

than that instance of exposed reality.

I wondered then whether it mattered to her.

A family large and in love,

I could see a respect beyond a material need,

though coiffed and dancing in style,

each one in unison with the other,

staying together while never drawn away.

I thought about time,

and how this moment

brought a family in tears,

with one avoiding eye contact,

holding back tears, just a look of fear,

watching outside of their own body,

the world around that continued without them,

at least she may have hoped,

and yet,

little girl, a sibling, in confusion,

crying and flipping pages,

watching the world exist, left curious,

while a tear escapes again, she is afraid

if her state of mind might match her sister

when that new age of reason knocked on her door.

The man steps in and asks for a name,

directed further to greater severity.

Each of these lives,

step into a circle,

not ones to explore,

just simply a desire to live.