Deeply Rooted

It was the greatest love story that didn't exist. We were inanimate, nothing more than two simple pumpkins. It wasn't realistic for a love like this to last, let alone exist in the first place. No one will ever know. They'll never understand that they witnessed our fervent story from beginning to end. They'll never know the love, the connection or how close yet so far we were from having it all. If it only had existed.

It began at a food market, just outside of town. It was sunny and bright, although we never would've known given we were stuck inside. Though we didn't mind, we’d spend our earliest days in our paper house, side by side. Sometimes things would get a little shaky and we’d spend some time apart while our foundation was shifted. Though it was inevitable that we would always find our way back to each other. 

We were just seeds of our future selves at the time. We were young and unaware of the dangers that lurked outside our paper home or what endeavors the future decided would be ahead of us. There were others in our home too, who also spent their early beginnings alongside us. Though none of them seemed to compare. None of them could ever be us.

There was a day when our paper home became torn apart. One by one its occupants were being taken away and we were scared. Something bigger than us had suddenly appeared and we were no match against its forces. It was stronger than us and real in every way that we were not. We stuck together, hiding out in the farthest corner of our home. Eventually we were the only two left and we felt we had met our final fate. 

Instead what happened was something more miraculous. At first all we could see was light. It was blinding and overwhelming in such a capacity. But then our surroundings blinked into existence and we had clarity. There was blue above us and green scattered below. For the first time in our nonexistent lives we saw the world. Our fear dissipated as we were held gently, cradled in the very hands that had invaded our home in the first place. But we weren't scared. We didn't know where we were or where we were going but we found that we didn't mind. As long as we were beside each other, we were content to take on whatever forces the world threw at us, together.

Before we knew it, we were being lowered, lying gently down into something brown and soft. It was warm and surrounded us on all sides. Like a bed full of pillows and blankets, we were tucked in tight, still side by side as he settled into our new home. For the first time we were alone together, in a place that was all of our own. We were still a bit lost as to where we were in this unfamiliar place but a sense of safety blanketed us both, knowing the other was right there. 

It began to rain. The space around us absorbed the rainfall and in a way it felt like we did too. The sky above us wept, as did we at times. Though like plants in the rain, the storms made us grow stronger and we felt ourselves begin to flourish. We stayed in this new place for a long time and in that time, we grew closer and found our lives beginning to intertwine. We became a part of one another, connected by our closeness and by love.

Through much of our time in this new home it remained dark but eventually, as we grew, we finally broke through the surface and found a light. It was just as bright as the first time but now we weren't so afraid of it. The thunder still sometimes shook our ground but they were fewer and farther apart these days. Instead of cowering and burying ourselves into the ground, we thrived and rose above it while our roots sank even deeper into the foundations. We found that there were others like us around but we were the only ones that had intertwined. We were our own separate beings like the others but we held a special connection that made us unique.

We were different but our differences made us special. “You ever see anything like it?” Someone had asked about us once. 

“Only a few times. They were always the greatest,” Another had replied. We were the greatest. 

We continued to grow alongside each other for a long time. Relationships are all about give and take and between us, we shared everything. We could communicate without a word. The selfishness and sacrifice is what kept us growing together. As the stars gazed down upon us, our closeness kept us warm when the sun was away. 

The air began to change as fall approached. Somewhere deep inside us we knew that meant our time would come soon but instead of dwelling on the fact, we perked up and stood strong. Our color glowed in the fall sun and we could feel ourselves reaching our peak. We were beautiful, married by our closeness and by our love.

And when the day came that we moved again, I wasn't scared anymore. With love and closeness, comes the need for space and individuality. Our connection was physically cut but it never faltered, for we still remained side by side. From the strength of our codependency, we learned to find our own independence and we never lost sight of our connection through the process. The warmth of our connection still lingered, even as we learned to be our own beings. We didn't need to be intertwined for us to survive.

The smell of the food market returned to our lives once more but this time we were grown. Reflecting on our past, we were reminded of our beginnings. From our paper house to where we stand now, on display for all to see as an example of true perfection. Perfection for us wasn’t a physical thing and true perfection wasn't actually perfect at all. There were bumps and dips in the journey, peaks in some places and even a few scars here and there. There were hundreds like us, each one only the slightest bit different that no one would really bat an eye. Though I could search for you and point you out right away, for you have always stood out to me. 

And as we wrinkled and rotted away, I decided then and there that there is no one else that could ever be so recognizable in a crowd. We are nothing like we were in the beginning but our love always remained the same. So as we spent our final moments in the same place we had met, I still remained by your side. And by your side we submitted to the cycle of life, nourishing the hungry. For eternity and for life, we were the greatest love story that never existed.