let us be thankful

we have been given
ourselves & each other
& a beautiful universe
for a playground

we’ve only been given
the merest hints
of who we are
& why we’re here––

but what delightfully
profound questions––
don’t you agree?

let us be thankful

if there is a cause––
we are an effect––
& we certainly
are

what a joy
to be at all––
even if
we’re only sprites

we’ve been given
a mind & a body
& a shadow & a radiance
& the right & the ability
to decide for ourselves

let us be thankful

each of us has
an unmistakable
essence & ancestry
clear back to the beginning
of everything
& we are riding
an arc to endlessness

each of us
is a change in the universe
that changes everything!

we’re ideas
that dance
whether there’s matter
or not

let us be thankful

to be is not the question––
it’s the astounding
answer

we are a wonder
among wonders all around us
& we have been given love
to make everything
shine

we are
& we grow
& we sing

like songbirds
flitting between galaxies
from one universe
to another

& we’re indestructible––
for nothing can ever
be destroyed––

not one second
not one quark
not one hug or kiss
or poem beyond translation

we are children
of a universe
where we are given
forever & forever & forever
to imagine––

we have everything
& freedom
to learn
& to love

we will always always be
growing growing up

let us be thankful!