A Billion Collisions

A Billion Collisions

...and so little fire.

A long life requires
I learn to stand on nothing,
the same way I learned
it is okay for me to disappoint
others with my repeated failings.

There is no easy remedy
for all those things
I cannot hold in isolation.
So I seize this moment,
subject it to intense scrutiny,
then release it back into mystery.

How can I possibly
hold myself together?

There were a billion collisions
which resulted in my being,
but now falling apart
is my reason for living.

---

I'm not playing a role.
I'm being myself, whatever the hell that is.
~ Bea Arthur