significance in poetry

in your other life
you would still hurt
you would just have
to pretend more
that you didn’t

in your other life
you would still have
lost who you’ve lost
you would have just
shared less time with
them before they were
gone because you were
so busy being that
great success that
you aren’t now

in your other life
more people would
say you’re great
but you would be
even more lonely

in your other life
you would still die
someday and probably
the exactly same day
and more people would
say your name that day
when you died, certainly
but you would have died
knowing so fewer people
known them so much less
since you were merely a
god to praise or to curse
not a real person to know
to learn with and to love

in your other life
you’d die owning more stuff
your name known by more people
having absorbed less of life’s lessons
having had true exchange with less people
your name ringing hollow through the ages
tolling clear and loud but
signifying nothing

in your other life
you’d have your dreams
but in this life
you have yourself
and that is
something