the only constant in poetry

the cities rose and fell as did the seas
the only constant being all the people
they all had different languages
they all had different faiths
they all had different technologies
but their lives were always so short
our lives are always brutishly short
they all deserved amelioration to
their suffering and all of them
deserved far more time to dream
than any of them ever received
let alone for you or for me

they’ll sell you frantic magic because
if you stopped to see the real
the beauty of the really real
you’d be so much more happy and
you’d be so much more humane and
you’d be so much less profitable
because they think that having money
will make this all less short and brutish
but it won’t
it never makes it better for them
while it makes it even worse
for everyone else
while it makes it worse for us
the best that you can do
is ignore their pleas
that you change your worldview
for their fleeting benefit

the businesses will rise and fall
the businessmen will even faster
and so too will you
but with a little luck
you can have the perspective instead
to help each other and to dream
to spend a little of your time
here in the beauty of the really real
together
something that can’t show up
on any ledger sheet
something that could never
turn a profit
not something permanently fake like money
rather something momentary real like love
like love
like people you can love
love love love
the only constant