This Is What Life Is All About Poem by RIC BASTASA

In reality
things really are
not that good

most of the time
there is no system
or order

for instance
you worry about
a broken glass

or that the bed
is in a disarray
as the pillow
is on the floor

the kitchen is a
big mess
catsup stains
the white cover
of the table

the cat is licking
milk from your
morning cup

and the rat is
taking the cheese
which you forgot
last evening

and there are
so many more
disorderly aspects
&
beyond all these
little things
missing or broken
or destroyed and
even forgotten

you regret being
here and you want
to be lost somewhere

you do not want
to make any repairs
or amends
and you get sick
and you want to
go on being sick
without going to
the doctor or
take the prescribed
medication


but despite all these
you begin to do the
things ought to be done
you follow procedures
you invent a system

perhaps all these mess
are not just yours but
also include the rest
of the world

and when you are gone
they too shall feel
the loss and grieve
for your unexpected
passing

at any rate you begin
to clean and arrange
messy things in your room
in your bed
in the kitchen

and invent a system
and take a list of
those missing ones

and then you get tired
and sleep,
and then you have so many
dreams to recall
and tell your wife and
some friends,

this morning you make
your own coffee
and sit by the veranda
and look out to the sea

now, you think about
nothing at all
nothing about the mess

for this moment you are
one with the world
and then with one sip
and another
you taste what coffee
is all about

you stand after a short
while, and
take a walk
and conclude that this is
what is life all about....