just enough

On one particularly bright Saturday afternoon, I was traveling home on the freeway when the car next to me caught on fire. At the time, it felt particularly gut-wrenching after a morning with a dear friend selling off pieces of her childhood via an estate sale. This poem was birthed from a conversation with the Divine.

last month

driving home from an estate sale,

a dear friend

gathering up

and sending out pieces

of a beautiful childhood

and her parents extraordinary lives -

the car next to me

caught on fire

flames enveloped it

within seconds

on the highway

going east -

life is short

the angel next to me whispered

some of my closest friends

are grieving losses

we didn’t expect

at 30 40 50

no one prepared us

even if they said

life is short

and,

as I pondered this brevity

on the highway

once again

I thought,

life doesn’t feel short

it doesn’t feel short

maybe because I’m living it

even if today

I’m on my way

to another doctor’s appointment

where I will sit

for no less than 2 hours

where I will be examined

inside and out

maybe because I will be

with people

who aren’t thinking

about how life is too short

but how to properly extend

our days

and I wonder if

that would have been more helpful

don’t tell me

life is too short

tell me how to make the most

of every blessed day

tell me how to survive

when times feel dark

so that when light breaks

my eyes are already open wide

ready to let in hope-filled rays

tell me how to absorb

the beauty of this moment

so it spills into the next

and the next and the next

tell me how some days will feel

too long and wide

britches bigger than I could ever

fit within

but that it’s a good thing

because most of us will wish for more days

for ourselves

our beloveds

yes, instead of saying

life is too short

make me believe

that life is just long enough

tell the angel beside me

to whisper

look up and out and beyond

tell them to remind me

every moment is a gift

but don’t tell me

life is too short

because life can be

whatever I make of it

and I will make it

just enough