where is oh there it is

how shall we live
in such
a world

how shall we have faith
or even
energy
to start the day
at all aplomb
with hope
in the new day’s
potential

where is the joy
that can’t be suffuse
in the world
but must be out there
somewhere
well
in here
as a promise
then a stitched pledge

we think that evil melts
when we throw water
on it

no
we don’t
we think down deep
that evil never
ends
never steps down

instead
runs
too many of our companies
and
too often
maybe always
gets elected

Pangloss’s garden cannot
be the answer
though we should live parametered
we shouldn’t live
frankly
barricaded

discipline’s important
and we need
restraint
we own

but
we are made for light and air
and the better part of
freedom

we are made for will
which is the
problem
though
we might choose freely
something that delights and
also
emboldens

but what are such things
that are not
comprised
to death
except for understanding compromise
in peace treaties
or
the love we bear each other

sounding trite
and silly
we shouldn’t be surprised

but we’ll have to take the chance
in order to
be ideal
sometime

c l couch


photo by Tony Mucci on Unsplash