Two women

 

Two women

Both nurses

Who know that while at work

They must joke— rather than cry

As a way to cope 

With the chaos

That is their normal day to day 

 

They will talk

Superficially

About plans for the weekend

The weather

And complement each other’s outfits

 

They are positive encounters

Warm and kind

Congenial

But not with any depth

Or large significance

 

One day

Things changed

For some reason

Unprompted

They both needed

And felt able 

To talk

About real things

 

One Nurse spoke to the other

About her beautiful kids but a marriage not working

The other

Wondering if marriage and children

Was even a possibility

Recognising their different stories

And the pain and joy held in both paths

Knowing that neither woman 

Had done anything wrong

To be feeling how they were at that moment 

A shared appreciation

 That their journey was their own to face with their graces

Yet still wondering what it may feel like

To be able to trade places

They looked into each other’s eyes

Holding back tears

Of sadness 

And of love and empathy for each other

In the shared understanding

That the journey of a woman

Is not easy

No matter which way you go

 

Two women— Different ages—  Different worlds

Bonded by anguish

 Wondering what could have been — and what may— or may not be

And within that lonely world —they found comfort in each other’s company