'Not Quite' and 'Almost'


She knew about fences, emotional
barriers built with misunderstanding,
constructed of unacceptable ideas and
short-sighteded understanding
(ironic as that was),
and though she had never sought
such a lofty perch, she often found
herself upon one, atop the fence
between the lands of 'Not Quite'
and 'Almost'... and knew if she fell someone
was sure to put her back in her place.

Her place it seemed was not in
'Not Quite', the land of brilliant
colors, recognized faces, road signs,
eyes that told a story, smiles seen across
a room, beauty of artwork, but probably
never a 'heard' sunset... nor was her
place in 'Almost', that land of shadows,
grays in differing hues, recognized voices,
unseen obstacles, imagined smiles, beauty
of morning songs, and she wondered if
they understood how much they could 'see'.

They claimed to be content, these residents
of differing lands, and seemed to understand,
that 'we live what we know and know what
we live'... but then she found the fences,
straddled them and decided their purposes.
Tall ones were built for those 'out of sight,
out of mind' times (another irony), stone
walls for those 'hard-headed unacceptable'
moments, and the pickets when they breathed
the same air and shared their differences.

In theory it was all good... but in reality
it was confusing to a child who simply longed
to be accepted in both lands for not of her
choosing was she given a footfall in each.
As she grew she leaned the honest
significance of the fences, rebelling
at times... and that because of this her
perspective would be not 'almost' or
'not quite'... it WOULD be different!
Time passes and still....

Here she sits. neither land her
perfect fit, each claiming that she does not
belong, and how ironic that they borrow
from each other to tell her she is 'almost
sighted' or 'not quite blind' (she has to
smile at this.. another irony), and she wonders marvels at how comfortable they have
become living behind their fences
of 'Not Quite' and 'Almost'.

Perhaps it is best this way on the outside
looking in... it just took her all these
years to understand sitting on fences
is not such a bad thing after all..

© mdbadgerow 2008

Rev. 2009