We were surprised to meet the Aliens
That were just sitting there beside us.
Surprised even after we had been surrounded by them,
Wore them,
Stepped into their bodies,
And put them into our bodies;
Crossing the line in the melted sand.

We were surprised that we loved an Alien,
Even though we loved in so many other ways;
Surprised even after we'd known love beyond the One,
Loving ourselves,
And seeing ourselves in others,
Finding empathy with those that are in the flat, shallow
  waters of our normal curve;
Extending compassion even to those yet to exist.

Loving pets and other furry things with faces,
To recognize the faintest anthropomorphic gaze;
Because we've felt that;
  and this;
Wished beyond desire to:
Never (die),
Always (be happy).
We imagine them as we want to be imagined.

So when the aliens that we became shook our hands
We embraced them soulfully,
Being ourselves surrounded by a great jungle of new souls.
Now, there are few things quite so dangerous,
As finding yourself in the middle of a jungle,
Surprised to be in love with an Alien.

And it makes a great story to tell of the conflict,
  the tragedies and horrors
That broke us and left us aching
From waiting too long and not waiting long enough,
From the constant feeling that the end was yesterday;
But only stories end;
While tomorrow just keeps happening,
So in my tomorrow we'll exercise the pain of learning,
Entering flow to surf the cresting singularity,
Until we tip toe through the stars forever.

But tonight!
Tonight we share a god's nest with an Alien egg
Firstborn, we can use the tools that freed us from our stasis
To fashion wings of creation, creativity and control.
Forging glowing feathers and showering us in bits of soft light;
Each spark a recorded decision, collectively crafted;
Shared with all,
Improved by all.
A living dream of flight guided by songs of contradiction:
Us and Other,
Angel and Demon,
Reflection and Evolution,
Creo Animam