Unraveling

(from Brainstorms)

In the beginning,
there was love.
And we saw that it was good.

Our beginning held hope
as our paths entwined,
allowing us to walk
hand in hand
down the road for a time.

With a knot at one end
rooting us,
our strands wound tighter
with each of us reaching further
to try to meet at the other end,
finding that the harder we pulled,
the more unyielding the rope,
as though rigid under the pressure
of its own resistance.

But now,
when I let go,
relax my pull,
the fibers loosen,
edges fray, and the jute
begins to separate from its mate.

The strands become distinct
until it is easy to distinguish
the one from the other.

Like a spring coiled tight
and suddenly released,
the two yarns unravel
with a quickening speed,
ease and fluidity,

revealing that they are each
strong enough
to stand on their own.