Count On It

count on it...

that numbers made the world
we came to believe
after all ten digits 
long ago ran out
and we stuck our toes into the fray
to count and be counted anyway

and they too ran out
a foot at a time
and numbers became stuck to 
our rulers feet or by meter, 
our sole, soul repeater

then we counted awhile,
and soon wired some beads 
to a wooden frame
'cause, unconsciously we knew
it'd never be the same

and abacuses counted because
Sumerians knew the power of
columns of orders of magnitude to 
give counting a certain, amplitude

and soon balances were forged and 
everything compared to something else - 
grain to sheep,
sheep to amphora,
amphora to slaves,
slaves to children
children to wives
neighbors lives to our own lives

covetousness counted as 
a capital idea
long before Adam Smith
or any form of mercantilism
came to bear witness on a weakness of man

yet who can count on power
is there a conversion factor
that shows more or less
that less is more than some detractor

what's the ratio of 
desire to need to
redemption to volition to
love to life - 
there's a number of ways to count it

© Goode Guy 2013-04-11
Copyright © | Year Posted 2013

Poem

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Horstkotter Avatar
May 14, 2013 at 6:32 AM
Well written. Enjoyed this piece.
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