Saturday, April 8, 2017

How We Stay Alive

How We Stay Alive
© Surazeus
2017 04 08

Down by the small creek winding through oak trees,
under sky flaming red from sunset gleam,
crickets sing the rhythm of beating hearts
when girls and boys hold hands and whisper secrets
that butterflies ignore while they search flowers
to investigate how we stay alive.

After watching Saturday evening news,
about planes dropping bombs on distant lands
and men driving trucks into crowds of shoppers,
Bobby turns the old television off,
then sits on the porch and listens to crickets
to investigate how we stay alive.

First there are the men who control the land,
second there are men who work on the land,
third there are men who process what we take
from the land to create food and machines,
and fourth there are men who ponder the land
to investigate how we stay alive.

Small yellow finch with black striped wings flits swift
from infinite expanse of somewhere else
to land on bouncing twig of the pear tree,
and explains the meaning of life in tweets
that pierce twilight with flashes of insight
to investigate how we stay alive.

My grandfather fought Nazi Germany,
my father fought Communist Vietnam,
then my brother fought Islamic Iraq,
but who will my son fight in World War Three
that simmers like volcano in our hearts
to investigate how we stay alive.

I wish we would not fight another war
but always we feel threatened by dictators
who replaced kings in the game of world power
since we prefer presidents we elect
as long as they play the role with good honor
to investigate how we stay alive.

You are the finch of war with yellow feathers,
so fly into the vast abyss of death
and teach me secret of eternal life
since we embrace meaninglessness of all,
yet give love and seek pleasure till we die,
to investigate how we stay alive.

Bobby raises the pistol to his head
and pulls the trigger, wincing at the blast
that fails to explode, so he laughs and flings
his weapon of death among the red flowers,
then whistles a tune from his favorite song
to investigate how we stay alive.

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