My life’s controlled by swelling paper piles:
rough drafts go here, and syllabi right there,
that one’s for worthy causes I should care
about, this one’s for frequent flyer miles
and credit card reports, the run of bills
that tell me what my spending limits are.
The journey to insolvency’s not far,
so should I save or spend it all on thrills?
I’ll tell you what my greatest thrill would be—
to live without these piles, all orderly—
or maybe just a neater symmetry—
no more receipts gone loose, my desktop free,
no more piles on the floor or in my bed.
Don’t even ask what piles dwell in my head.
Copyright ©
Allison Joseph, all rights reserved