Poem: You Are Never Ready

“You are never ready.”
That’s what I heard.

You are never ready for how
   Marriage
   Children
   Miscarriage
   Death
Changes your life

And now, the end is near
And so I face the final curtain
My friend, I'll say it clear
I'll state my case, of which I'm certain
I've lived a life that's full
I traveled each and every highway
And more, much more than this, I did it my way

And so we improvised
Since we weren’t ready
We did it our way
Because there was no other way

We narrowed our brows
And looked determined
To be prepared

For anything

But weren't

And now for the final act
We make up numbers for the money people
Who want to know exactly what we can tolerate
We make up blueprints
But have misplaced the ruler

And after all the talk
And all the numbers
And all the stories
We
Still
May not be
Ready

O
Well