Death, As Usual

 Death

As Usual 

Nearly eight billion people 

I am merely a speck in this vastness 

My circle of contact 

Is around a thousand 

Still, just a speck 

In the abundance of life 

Teeming upon the earth 

With four point three births 

And two point zero deaths 

Occurring every second 

Someone somewhere 

Is experiencing the joy of life 

As well as the pain of death 

As usual 

It is not my aim here 

To minimize 

The tragedy of death 

Or to trivialize 

It’s accompanying grief 

Quite the opposite, in fact 

I am seeking to point out 

Death is integral to living 

To never lose is never to love 

To never care is never to grieve 

To never love is never to live 

And to quote JM Barrie 

“To live will be an awfully big adventure”

So, live 

Love 

Care 

Make friends 

Lose 

Hurt 

Weep 

Grieve 

As usual 

Do not be swallowed 

By the looming vastness 

Live raucously as a usual state

Love recklessly as a normality 

Do not be consumed 

By death as usual 

Shine your light 

Share your voice 

Write your words 

Sing your songs 

Feel your emotions 

(All of them) 

Live your uncommon life 

Express your unique passion 

Be Extraordinary 

As usual 

© Ron Simpson Jr.

May, 25, 2024 

Life

How do we measure life 

Is it in the numbers 

Is it in the years we live 

Is it in the days we consume 

Is it in the steps we take 

Is it in the friends we make 

Is it in the wealth we amass 

Are we simply hoarders 

In the vastness of living 

How do we measure life 

The best and the worst of us 

Breathe the same air 

Air which we did not provide 

In our capitalistic society 

We are justly categorized as users 

We are consumers 

For all the good we think we may do 

We are still consumers 

We enter life stealing our first breaths 

Our hands grasping to take what life has 

When we leave, we are still trying to take more 

Thus, fulfilling our designated title, consumer 

In the end, others will survey our existence 

Others will summarize our gains and losses 

On their weighted spreadsheets 

Others will measure our life's success or failure 

How do we measure life 

Is this the measure 

When I have lived my life 

When others gather the remnants 

When the sorting of a lifetime begins 

When sentimentalities are distributed 

And the carrions of life gather 

When the bargain hunters are satisfied 

Regardless 

Of how others measure life 

The importance they place 

Whether I measure up or not 

Matters only little by comparison 

If I can find my measure 

And draw to that line or above 

To give all I have to give 

To do all that is within me to do 

To you, I say 

Live your lives 

Speak your truths 

Help where you can 

Lift others 

Smile a lot 

Laugh more 

Forget the measure 

Live 

Life 

© Ron Simpson Jr. 

June 9, 2024