two photos

here, i have two photos
both are from long ago
they hang on that corkboard
just above a cup full of pencils to draw with
and next to a fortune cookie fortune

i had these here in the place where i work
as a reminder, that my work was not me,
that i was part of something else
a life apart from these hammering machines
and deadlines

one, she sits on a rail of a wooded foot bridge
looking away from the light and into the tops of trees
a camping trip, us alone... finally.
the begining.
this is where i dared myself to fall
and i fell,
and the lines were drawn between us
scribbled, tentative.

the other in a studio.
she looks at the camera
calm, knowing, hopeful

oh, how i fretted over that day
the portraits
the five by sevens
the wallet size
the becoming official
our lifeline displayed
captured for family
caught in a flash

i have these here in the place where i work
as a reminder, that my work is not her
that i had something else
a life apart from these hammering machines
and dead
lines