He stood on the edge of two worlds
Contemplating his life
As he floated along between
Yesterday and tomorrow
A clock ticked loudly reminding him
That time does not stop
No matter how important the moment
He wished he would have
Paid less attention to the clock
Time to go to work
Time to go to a meeting
Time to go to church
Time to go
Go
Go
A railroad crossing sign
Painfully reminded him
Of opportunities he had let slip away
By being too cautious
At the crossroads of his life
He wished he had
Jumped on the train of uncertainty
At more of his crossroads
Instead of standing safely on the sidelines
A lamp post cast just enough light
To see his immediate surroundings
But not enough to see into the darkness
He wondered if the light
Was directly powered by the energy
He had put into living his life
What might have been the result
If he had displayed more passion
Embraced more risk
Laughed more
Loved more
Would the lamp be shining brighter
If he had spent less time
Worrying about the future
More time living in the moment
His eyes fell on the luggage by his feet
He had bought it years ago
When he had made a list
Of places he would go
Only a few destination stickers
Had been obtained before
His travel list
Had been replaced by
A weekly things to do list
He loved his family
And had led a good life
But all his youthful dreams
Had been sacrificed
For a simple routine
And a dutiful life
Why had he lived as “either, or”
Either he could be a family man
Or he could be a world traveler
Either he could be a businessman
Or he could be an artist
What if he had realized
He could take care of his family
And allow time for his dreams
Waves splashed around the raft
As the unseeable shoreline
Loomed closer in the darkness
He could see the simblance
Of a mountain in the distance
He could since a different world
Awaiting him in the afterglow
The waves got rougher and
One of the suitcases was knocked over
Unlatched it spilled out memories of
Packing to go to the hospital
For the birth of his first child
Packing for family vacations
For his 25th anniversary
For funerals, graduations, weddings
He got the sense that he was at
The most important crossroad
Of his existence
What to carry into eternity with him
Either
The dreams yet unfulfilled
Or
The memories of a lifetime
His heart raced as he felt the raft
Touch land and knew he had to decide
The clock was ticking louder
The lamp light was growing dimmer
The crossroads sign seemed to be fading
A decision was required
Now
For the first time in his life
In the last moments of it
He made his best decision
He jumped off the security of the known
Onto the shoreline
Into the darkness of uncertainty
Carrying one suitcase filled with dreams
And the other filled with memories
No longer stuck in a state of “either,or”
Finally realizing
He could have so much more
E.A. Fussell
08/18/2018
