You were born to this world naked,
Appraised and adored
You were made a blank canvas
To impress and record
And I completed that proverbial "we,"
So inexplicably bound
And we'll share this flesh detail
As long as "we're" around

Oh, how we use this vessel,
Your hands like anvils
Compounding words of wisdom
To smith our tools

And you came home to a warm household
Stocked with fair amenities
And you approached each scholastic endeavor
With savant-esque ease

And after graduating with your papers,
You stoked a flame of your own
And with your one and only you scaffolded
Equally shared bones

And oh, all the seasons push over
Like bumbling brothers
Eagerly awaiting
To take their turn

And the cycle continues to spin
Each day a passing glint
I must say I'm most impressed
By all this time you collect

They found your body naked
On the bathroom floor
Now, I'll spare the grotesque details,
But it was a scene to abhor
And you spent hours evaporating,
Too weak to stand
Until your scarce visitor had entered with
An outstretched hand

And now you sink slower than ever
Next to a pane of passing weather
With only its filtered sunlight
To grace your bed


I am grateful for all I have learned
But before this bridge is burned
There's one last question I must arrest
Have you had time to reflect?

In your old age
On your vain mistakes
And regrets you made
All the things you've lost
Your void memory box
All the opportunities you had left unaddressed
Have you had time to reflect?

Have you had time to expect
Any company
In your fleeting weeks
Between bouts of sleep
Any caring hearts
That know what you are
And can stand to see you at less than your best
Have you had time to expect

Which exact steps come next
As you ration every breath?
Your movement feels so uncandid
As the fractals form under your eyelids
You take a look around the room
At these faces you swear you must knew
Compelled to speak some advice
You say, "You've got to live your longest life."