Relationships with Expiration Dates / by Nick Burrows

Relationships which run on expiration dates. The gas station doesn't take sense as payment. The gas station only takes Dollars and cents. The kind of cents that can buy you a breath mint. Freshen the mind, take in the sunlight from behind the eyes of another. It’s warm, pouring out from behind each iris, this feels like an eclipse. You’re the only one who sees it. You can’t buy that. All the cents in the world can’t make someone turn their eyes on you like you’re the only other person in the world. With these expiration dates these emotions become currency for the heart. Everyone wants to be wanted and we deserve to be acquitted of the turmoil inside their own head. Should I stay or should I go, how do you make that choice. Deciding takes time. You’re effectively wagering all of your time on the decision to stay. To go, it’s an easier decision to make.

You feel like you’re not wagering all in with the seconds you have left of this life. Working past the expiration date can be dangerous. Occasionally necessary if you find something that must be kept. Stamp a new date on this one and head back out into the world together. Making new expiration dates for those you care about can cost a lot, but it’s like any good investment you need to have faith that you’ll make back what you put into it. You discover that there are plenty of people out there that will be making these same choices about you. There’s an equal number of people who would spend it all to extend their time with you and there’s an equal number who wouldn't spend a dime. Discovering who that might be is difficult, one thing might always be true, and that’s that you can go home if you need expiration dates that only run out once.