there was a day, like any other day,
in a military place and military time,
where an exercise was as close to war as
Marcel Marceau speaking about pantomime,
we the engineers were to build a bridge,
there was no margin for error, the length
had to fit.
The coded message sent and the math did not
agree with the winter reconnaisance, see?
It was spring and the creek had blown back
the banks, in such a telling way that we
                                      had to say
in clear, "it's got to be long, it's got to be long"

we measure time in much the same way
what have you got to show for the time you have
been allowed, out to play,
run with that rope and when it stops,
so do you, your life is through,
birth and youth are all that sadly some get,
others have had a century and will live more, I bet,

the emPHAsis is on the wrong syllABLE,
bring not your curriculum vitae to the table,

I want to know, how many
hours in a row, have you smiled?
Found something lost or captive,
returned it or set it free,
I want to know have you ever
hugged a child and let them decide
when to let go?
I want to know have you knelt beside
a person in despair, put one hand
on their shoulder and caught every tear
that they dropped in your other hand,
and gathered them
up,
and threw them into the sky and cried,
Why, oh Why, this one?
why not me instead...
    
I want to know if you have ever woke up laughing,
when you went to bed crying, or
thanked God for living when you thought you were dying,
At length, I want to know if you know how vital you are
to the rest of us, with out you we all fail the test,
that make us humanity,
that make us community
common unity
poetry.



©DWE032014