I wake
I work
I wonder
What sets the day’s design
Is this the last sun that you’ll see
Or is the last look mine?
Did we, before creation
Watch as the clock was set
And like the great Greek in the poem
Accept the time we get?
Do we all sign the bargain
The mix of joy and strife
Aware that we must make the most
Of our allotted life
And then, by some distraction
Forget along the way
That once we were aware
Of both the hour and the day
And in that frightful moment
Before the bill comes due
Does the soul, in sorrow say,
“I knew, I knew, I knew.”
There is no consolation
A word then to the wise
The ending may be sudden
But it comes as no surprise
The lesson may be common
But it’s wisdom, unsurpassed
Live well, and live each day, my love
As if it were your last
