Exuberance: As Far as We Can Go

‘When finally I get
What I need,
It’s always a case of,
Too little, too late!’
I complained.

But then,
As I considered further,
I concluded,
‘Tis always thus!’

No matter
How far
We travel,
We always have further to go,

Too far
Is never
Far enough
For us;

Even the Buddha,
When he came to
The end
Of his long life,

Hesitated
On the threshold
Of final release,
Reflecting that
There was
So much more
That he could do,
If only, he but dallied
A while longer

But, “no,” he decided, at last,
He had to go,
To move on,
As do all of us.

Extroverted: Succinctly

What a mess!
Why all this work?
Where does it lead?
Nowhere, as far as I can see;

So much frustration and effort
For nothing,
Just to make
A handful of dollars,

Would it not
Be better
To work for nothing
For myself?

And yet,
Would it be
Any less frustrating
Or any more profitable?

Alas, I fear not,
Going out on one’s own
Is such a risk
And requires many resources,

No one is independent
Of circumstances
And they need to be just right
In order to succeed;

And where will this end?
When will this project cease?
With my end, I suppose
Whatever that is. . .

Put succinctly: Everything and everyone
Is bound
By circumstances
And yet,
Everything and everyone is free.

Extroversion: Looking Outward

What’s on tonight?
The same old thing
Going into work
And coming home again,

Listening to some news
About war and injustice,
Efforts to bring peace
And reduce the general unrest, without success,

Major swings in the world’s
Economic fortunes,
Money changing hands
Through the electronic counters,

People crying for justice,
While powerful nations
Sit it out and wait
Watching the course of fate,

The hand wringing never ceases
But no action takes place
As the violence picks up the pace
And refugees race to escape the devastation,

It’s a puzzle to me,
How anyone can be free
When nobody does anything
To ensure it comes to be,

My compassion grows
For all those
Who’ve gotten in the way
Of the bombs falling every day,

May they all find refuge
From this terrible situation,
May we all find a method
To put an end to the carnage
Before it’s too late for all of us.