That’s Life

the end of each chapter in my life
left me dangling in mid-air or flailing
in whitewater rapids to nowhere

new chapters, always begun in disarray
regardless of best intentions and plans
always went astray – but that’s life

seldom has anything gone as expected
not always the worst result
but generally not one fondly projected

it’s surprising to me how many of them
ended in pain and sorrow and how many
left me speechless and uncomprehending

each new start, an improvisation
laying-on paint, running musical scales
or penning rhymes – stabilizing time

final chapters, not sad or bad
though not what I thought or expected
but a lucky one, gobsmacked, dumbfounded

that’s life

–LE

Many people die at twenty-five and aren’t buried until they are seventy-five. — Benjamin Franklin