What Will Happen

What will happen when the light goes out,

When this bright consciousness expires,

When I no longer have the advantage of these hands,

When I no longer can see?

Do not go there.

Do not wonder about what will happen in the end.

Do not wonder about the end.

Wonder, instead, on the now,

On the presence after all these years

Of the taste of the hamburger on the fresh bun,

Of the sound of the gravel under the wagon’s wheels,

Of the scent of the kitchen in the old house.

The light will go out, and

Then the answer will appear.

--August 20, 2013