Lay of the Land

Evil and good endure;
the rest is history,
its endless ebb and flow,
the daily onset of events
and circumstances.
We arrive and pass away
and, in-between –
that curt, fragmented meantime –
taste cruelty – experienced,
or passed along – the slow
and angry bitterness of absence,
injury and loss,
with every now and then
a momentary exaltation,
generosity perhaps,
uniting’s glimpse of ecstasy
and the fidelity of longing.
In the end it all begins
again and whichever wins or loses
never is announced.
Kindness, however, does appear
to wear exceeding well. While laughter
shapes a bright, persistent music.