“Eskimo Thirty-Three (Meditate)” – from “Zen and My Friends”

This pandora’s box, upon me and us.
Mind me, debating me, my apologies.
My own insecurity, tasting me, touching me.
Mining these mountains.
I worry we’ve come too far.
That there’s not much left for our children,
for those that are to come after us.
A treasure trove of cryptic texts I’ve left in my wake.
Like a floating cannonball.
Invaluable lessons laid out along the way.
I pray there’s time to learn from our mistakes.

And I’m tip toeing across this razor’s edge still.
There’s a reluctance in the air, an uncertainty.
Where is God in any of this?
No ulterior motives here.
I’ve tortured myself plenty.
And I haven’t traded in my truth.
For that temporary fix, that fraudster.
My thirty second alibi,
who whispers softly in the night air.
Tells me just what I need to hear.
But I’m still desperate and ravenous.

The deals we make among ourselves.
The give and take,
the temporary resolve.
Embracing comfort for calamities.
We’re fish in a barrel,
a canary warrior,
a sucker for punishment.
Taking long, deep breaths now.
The measured beat of an aching heart.
I scratch my head now.
What to do with all this time in silence?