Such a waste
to worry over things
that never were.
Timelines
that died on the vine,
and dead-end streets
to nowhere.
Sometimes
you have to step outside
of yourself,
of your home,
of your life
to be exposed
to the wind, the sun, and the rain.
All these things are real.
They’re really happening.
Get yourself attuned
to the living world.
Hear the wind in the trees,
the sound of a bird’s wings
slicing the air.
The howl of the wolf,
the song of the night,
punctuated by the crackling
of a fire.
To be present in the world,
this world,
the real one,
is a panacea
for regret,
and loss,
and trepidation over
what never was,
and what will never be.
Under a starlit sky,
unpolluted by city lights,
one can almost imagine
an infinite number of timelines
stretching out into the dark.
Some short,
some long,
and some not yet born,
but more potential for things to be,
than not.
Out of our lives.
Out of our minds.
Lay possibilities we cannot see
when tied
into our myriad of hopes
and dreams,
and disappointments.
Out there,
is real life.
DJR – 2023
