Picking paths
in our infinite continuum.
It all seems so clear
from this side.
So easy to decide
in the flow state,
then we hit
a little turbulence
and we start tumbling.
Suddenly,
all that momentum
that was carrying us forward
with such grace and efficiency
becomes a catastrophic,
uncontrolled transit.
We are no longer in control,
no longer able to choose a path.
Bewildered by our new circumstances,
as we’re turned around
and battered against the walls,
we miss doors we would have taken,
choices we would have made,
exits leading to places
we hoped we would end up.
Eventually,
we smooth out our course again,
but now, we are much further
down the timeline.
We pass new doors,
branches and tributaries,
but these are all
off-ramps to the unknown.
We might be too scared,
or angry,
or ashamed
to even make a choice, now.
Everything seems lost;
our life wasted.
One of those exits
might lead to somewhere
better than we could imagine,
while another could lead
to even darker places.
We start to fear
the fallout of our own choices,
conceding to a slow, quiet,
meaningless existence
in the continuum.
This is the trap
that many find themselves in;
stuck in the mainstream,
afraid to deviate from the known.
Take a chance,
make a choice,
change course.
This ride ends the same way
for all of us,
we might as well
see what’s out there,
because the continuum
goes on forever.
HG – 2021
