We walked together, our villains and heroes at our back, united in a new chorus, old divisions forgotten. New songs from instruments forgotten, fresh harmonies from once-lost clefs. A parade, a show of force, a new day, as new strengths and recipes make us forget what we once were. As is our new tradition for a one-time event, we bowed, knelt, and pressed our heads together, noses tilt, and touch our eyeballs to each other. Irises make contact with the gentlest of kisses, deform slightly, and the ritual ends. I stood, remembering the two that came before me, now one, and understood more. A sadness, a desire to visit old struggles (oddly, from both sides?), to remember left arm versus right knee, but also a relief, and a pride.. a tired smile crosses the face, corners of eyes wrinkle and show a momentary age. "We learn to take what is given, and to live with it" is what we hear on the wind.. it continues, but we have learned all we need. Our time here passed, we seek different soils, carrying the weights and levity of experience of a new multitude.