L'appel du vide

Source: Tumblr

 I  
pronoun first person singular

When I walk across the bridge, I feel the inherent pull toward swirling waters. Drawn to my sublime--cet appel du vide. The height, dizzying. The water, welcoming. The fall, terrifying. The silence, tempting.

we
pronoun first person plural

When we walk across the bridge, we are together. We observe: there is the height, there is the water, there is the fall, there is the silence. But together, there is no pull.

And so we walk across University Bridge. There is only the comfort of contact, our intertwined arms. There is only our lighthearted chatter. The surprisingly cloudless Seattle skyline.  Our nearly empty Starbucks red cups--a skinny peppermint mocha for me and a chai tea latte for you--in the relaxed grips of our exposed hands, chilled in the brisk wintry air. We walk.

You, me, and the city.

And then I feel what I haven't felt since May 24, 2012 on the Wobbly Bridge in central London. "Reminded of the instability beneath [my] feet," I know I am alive and delighted to be so (The Sense of an Ending, Julian Barnes). Glad to be here with you.

Glad to be a we instead of an I.