Why came I here?

Why came I here?

Whether in mind or body

Is there any knowing?

Whatever the circumstance

There is consequence.

The road lies long

Stretching out in all directions

The sea ebbs and flows

There is freedom in acceptance,

The onset of rage

Offset by an understanding

Of the complexion of ignorance

In all things.

The progress of events

The spurt of growth

As nature plays its games

Always at the periphery

Just out of reach

At the edge of perception,

The bounteous gifts

A hand stretch away.

The innocent would be better served

If I were to turn the other way

The saltwater lapping at my feet may cleanse me

But there is

Aways someone more deserving.

The wind plays tricks

With falling leaves

Lifting them, abruptly

Tossing them on high

Somehow it is celebratory.

Oft times I am surrounded,

The sound of breaking waves overwhelming

Interspersed with the rumble

Of desultory exchange,

So many men grumbling,

Mumbling in disdain

At the poverty of their lives

Even as they stand surrounded

By riches

Drowning in wealth.

The air ripples around them

I shiver in their presence

Whether, in a dream or no,

Evil has substance

Pushing me back,

I could fight

But there is an inevitability to their decline.

I walk on white sand

A causeway disappearing,

The Whitman in me

Scathing the rise of pretension

The belief rife in man

That they will endure above all things.

The spur upon which I walk

Is no more.

A lifeboat

Cast adrift

Floating in Aspic

An island in an endless sea,

A tempest of uncertainty

Searching for humility

Watching time slip away

For all eternity.