If, God forbid,

I was to be stranded on an island

In some extreme Castaway situation,

I would only want my cousin to come with me.

 

We would die, but we would die together.

We've not watched enough episodes of Man vs. Wild,

But we have memorized the lines to episodes of Friends,

And we have our own jokes to make it through each sleepless night.

 

We would die, but we would die laughing.

The silly voices we've acquired over the years

Would keep us entertained as we wish

For a ship to pass by and see our sloppy S.O.S. on the beach.

 

We would die, but we would die remembering. 

The humidity would bring back hot Alabama summer days,

And each shabby meal we would make would bring memories of our grandma's delicious meals,

And each animal we would encounter would remind us of our outdoorsy aunt who kept wild animals as pets.

 

We would die, but we would die crying.

Each memory would remind us of home, and we would remember

All the good times we had with our families, 

And with each other.

 

We would die, but we would die silently. 

The stars in the sky would look different than before.

Comfortable quietness would become more frequent,

And we would lie awake at night knowing the other isn't sleeping.

 

I don't want to die, but moreso,

I don't want to see you die.

I want to see you grow up and cconquer the world,

Not rot on an island.

 

I'd die, but I'd work tielessly to save you.

If you succumbed to death and breath left your body,

I would only hope that it would happen

Fifty years later, after you've lived the life you deserved.