she asks herself one question

lying on her back

eyes grazing

popcorn

ceiling

why?

why do i 

live and breathe and fight?

why do i steal oxygen from the world?

she feels light shafts 

balance

on the tips of her toes

and hears

wind 

gently kiss her ears and hairline

and she knows.

the beauty of life

that God has created

is worth

stealing oxygen for.

it is for

a teen mom

choosing to deliver her tiny girl

wrapped in fluffy pink blanket

it is for

the man, haunted by evil

looking up and knowing he is loved by God

for the first time

in a tormented existence

it is 

for the weak and the strong

those who are drowning

and those who think they can swim to shore on their own

that Jesus died

it is for all of humanity

and that is the reason,

she knows,

that she steals oxygen.