It Exists Differently for Each of Us by Danielle Wong

He stood at the edge of the pond and saw
the water sit still.
Its colourless hue blended with the grass,
the flowers, the trees.
The silent pond slept
while he saw plain facts.
I stood at the edge of the pond and saw
diamonds dance on top
with a slight ripple when a dragonfly
skimmed across softly,
reminding me
of my mom and her eyes.
I stood at the edge of the pond and saw
minnows chase minnows,
playing hide-and-seek/tag between the fronds;
their laughter echoed
across their waterscapes.
I stood at the edge of the pond and wondered
was it your brown eyes
or mine that are green
that cause us both
to see what we see?
Or do we both see the same pond as it is,
its image distorted and cracked
by our minds,
rolled and kneaded,
till you see just flour
and I the pastry?
We stood at the edge of the pond and saw
the tiny body
under the sun,
but our words spoke
from opposite sides.
He stood at the edge,
and I stood at the edge,
of the jewel-speckled pond
we can no longer
locate.
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Danielle Wong, author and mother, expresses her thoughts most easily through poetry and short stories. Her work is in various anthologies and journals. Visit her at daniellewong.ca