You sit over the water
The concrete bridge feels good underneath you
Solid
As your feet dangle over nothingness.

Staring at the water, through the water
At the blank that lies at the bottom
A blink of your eye and an eternity’s passed
The water has turned into ice.

You can see shadows passing under the frozen surface
Those who were quicker, more lucky than you
The night has fallen but the moon lights the way
As the concrete freezes beneath you.

Your hands move for the first time in the blink of an eye, an eternity
To the edge of the bridge, ready to push
Your arms move with them, tensing to push
Then the rest of you moves, for you have pushed.

Then you’re falling to the ice
Which is turning back to water, ready to envelope you
The shadows swirl in welcoming excitement
You wonder how it will feel to join them.

Now you’re close enough to see their suddenly ghoulish faces
Bared teeth and groping talons grabbing eagerly
As ice tears stream down your face
For this is what you’ve condemned yourself to.

Your eyes are open but you don’t see it coming
It catches you, instead of the tearing claws and gnashing teeth.
Gray feathered wings twice your size on both sides
Your tears thaw to water as you sob at the warmth.

It carries you, with its warmth,
Its wings beating down on both sides
You cry water tears into the soft heat until there’s nothing left to cry or freeze
Then you lift your face and see where it’s taken you.

There are deep reds, soft blues, warm yellows
They swirl calmly with royal purples and playful greens
The sound of the wings at your side
Intertwines with the colors to make a slowly whirling soft sigh of music

You blink, and an eternity passes
The sighing colors have left now
You’re again on the bridge
The frozen gray bridge.

But it’s no longer gray –
The night sky and water not black.
The colors are still in your eyes, they sigh in your ear and illuminate everything
Making the familiar surroundings brand new and remarkable.

You go home smiling,
Your live your life smiling,
For the colors are always whispering
Always sighing in your ear.

You die many years later
With white hair, a raspy voice, and a smile still on your face.
As you take your last breath
You rise from your body and lift your new wings

Flying to catch the one falling to the water
Then to the sighing swirling colors
Back over the water, smiling,
Flying to go catch another.