The Parallel Lines Has Become Perpendicular

Dear the man behind the camera, 

Remember that very very old day when you asked me, "Why are you so keen on words? Why do you choose writings over other activities?" (You might not remember that day cause it took place almost two years ago, but that's okay). 

I bit my lips, then answered, "Cause for me, words are powerful. I can capture and describe my whole world through words!" You nodded your head, but your eyes told me that you doubted my answer. Of course, you doubt it. With your Canon EOS 7D, you can capture this whole universe through another means: pictures. 

Then, there we are. We speak through different languages. I paint the reality in writings, you preserve your moment through images. And we thought we couldn't understand each other.

Even in professional way, I used to write the news, you snapped the pictures, then the editors combined it. Like two parallel lines, our works walked side by side. But, we never crossed the line. 

Maybe you just still didn't understand how I could be so upset in group chat over one typo or non-italic word. And I, well, I didn't get it how you could be so pissed off by a little cropped photo. 

****

Until they decided to make a new project. It required me to make proper captions for your photos. Or else, I had to checked the captions you made on your own before it was published. I didn't say that it was easy. 

You gave me three words as the caption and you said, "Just let the audiences make their own meaning to my work." But I insist, "This is a journalistic photography. We have to make sure that the audiences can get the message clearly, the way what really happened in there. So, we need to give the context to the audience through words. "  

I revised your three-words-caption to one-paragraph-story. I know you were not happy (but I have more power than you, so I did it anyway). But then, the project was going quite good. At that time, we realized one thing; 

We communicate through different means. But, your means complements mine. And vice versa.  The parallel lines has become perpendicular. 

And one day, you thought that we had to give a name to the point where the lines met. I said sceptically and quite too logically, "No, it's unnecessary. Why should we give a label in a first place, if later we just throw so much pain to each other in order to take back that label?" 

You replied, "I'm not going to tell you that everything will always be easy. Being together is never a constant bliss. But, think about this; doesn't it sound good to have someone who always get your back?"

To always have my back. That's it. As simple as that. No candy-coated words at all. There's no "I will make you happy forever" or "We will spend the rest of our lives together." It's just "to always have your back".

And that's enough. I looked back to the past few months and yes, you're there. 

****

You stood there in the rain just to handed me painkiller cream and band-aid in the day I almost broke my toe (Cause your new partner was so reckless stepping out her slippery balcony). Or do you remember the day after, you handled 100 of my quantitative research instruments cause I had to see the doctor? 

And yes, we need reciprocity to make it works. So, how about waiting the messenger for more than 4 hours the day you left your key inside your motorcycle baggage? Or how I chose to stay up late to discuss the choices you had to take immediately while I had to attend important meeting at 7am? 

And yeah, you are right; it's nice to have someone who always get our backs. It's nice having someone whom we can have a real interaction, not an atomised and transactional one. So, happy zwölf! May "I got your back" will always be our favorite words to each other. 


Your reckless partner,
D

P.S.: This what-so-called interpersonal relationship will go through the way I've ever known; one of us will walk out of the door at the end of the day. But before one of us pass that door, please have a glance to this words. To the November 12th. To us.