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Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Sliding Fences

Why can’t we see through to the other side?
This mythical façade that we create in our minds,
That incessantly suggests that our life is not good enough on the inside.
What is it going to take for you to feel like you “made it,”
So that instead of waking up, rolling your eyes at this life, lamenting about how much you hate it,
Burning passion sets your soul on fire and you can’t wait to get up and taste it?
How long are you going to simply lie there and waste it,
Salivating over everyone else’s life,
Ignoring your own true wealth, constantly mulling over your strife?
This picket fence freshly painted American white,
With its stakes wedged so closely, chokingly tight,
An indelible fault line between the haves and have-nots, forever haunting,
With a sign deeply embossed high up on its ledge, taunting,
“Ha ha, I made it. You didn’t. Kiss my ass.”
Unaware that their happiness is superficial and will never last.
Look at how their lawn spans the horizon, green and lush,
You imagine the soft blades tickling your toes, thick and plush,
Yet, unbeknownst to you, it’s actually freshly installed sod,
Covering up bare, decaying, weed-infested earth, surrounded by fencing laden with dry rot.
But you’d never know it, ‘cause envy glazes your eyes,
Wake up! The other side, too, is riddled with unpretty and lies.
Many times, it’s the fantasy that plays throughout your mind,
This fairy tale of what could be, and should be, and what you wish you could simply leave behind.
It’s the lonely single woman who fantasizes of monotonous married life with a soul mate,
It’s the bored married woman who yearns to once again be free to explore and casually date.
It’s the desperate childless whose heart breaks each time her cycle begins,
It’s the frazzled mother of three young kids who secretly regrets having children.
It’s the crowded apartment renter who wishes for a mortgage and more space,
It’s the overwhelmed homeowner who yearns for simple apartment living because he can’t afford repairs, and his mortgage is 3 months late.
It’s the frustrated high school graduate that can’t earn more than minimum wage,
It’s the weary MBA supervisor that comes homes every night after the kids are in bed because they always have to work late.
Why do we devote so much time daydreaming that our lives would be so much more enriched “if only…..”?
Not realizing that the idea of “the other side” is nothing but a mirage, a phony.
Yes, life is defined by dreams, and goals, and things you want to have, and things you want to achieve,
But the key to happiness is realizing and appreciating that right here, right now, you’ve got everything you need.
And understanding that that other lawn is full of insects and weeds,
Just like your lawn,
This masterful fantasy of how much better your life will be on the other side, it’s not all what you believe.
The truth is that there will be hardships, downfalls, and frayed endings that will unweave.
Accept these truths, achieve what you want to achieve, but appreciate the beauty of your life, and don’t be consumed by this jealousy disease.
Lead your life to its own beat and set your own tone.
Because their life is not a ruler upon which to measure your own.

Serena
May 2011

YOUTUBE: "A Woman's Perspective"

Performed at Busboys and Poets, May 11, 2011. I gotta LOL at the baby bump........