The Cycles of Life

It was another of those cycles
at the bottom
the fever doing a number
on the inner monologue
with himself he fretted
wild thoughts
but since childhood
it was always the same
just wait
time will bring the cycle
around and like
a slow motion movie
things would improve
and the hope of normalcy
would in fact be within reach
and more time
as feverish thoughts
faded into the unknown
simply things
like a glass of cold orange juice
or the warm breeze through
the open window
just confirmed
that hope was
still alive.

Time and Place

For years I was lost
in thought about everything
until I found a wooden ruler
in the back of my desk drawer
that I used to measure space
to such a degree that
on graph paper
I could map my entire life
with the help
of time
yet couldn't find
exactly where I was at
until I broke the wooden ruler
and used words
written on the back
of that graph paper
to describe how I felt
during numerous moments
in time
and I found each moment
had a place
that I soon discovered
was much more interesting
than those places
on the other side
of that piece
of graph paper.

He Tried to Imagine

He tried to imagine
how far away were those stars
that forever twinkled overhead
since he remembered
a late night camping trip
a child before a camp fire
mesmerized by dancing flames
and glowing cinders swirling
to the late night sky
and stars overhead
more than he could ever imagine
but now imagining not
they were real
and forever more
in their rightful places
always right there
following him
through the ages
until at the other end
the old man
no longer imagined
what he knew
was really
real.