The longer I live,

The more deeply I learn

That love,

Whether we call it friendship

Or family or romance,

Is the work of mirroring

And magnifying

Each other's light.

​

Gentle work. Steadfast work.

Life-saving work in those moments

When life and shame and sorrow

Occlude our own light from our view.

But there is still a clear-eyed loving person

To beam it back.

In our best moments

We are that person for another.

James Baldwin