Good Morning

It's been an odd dream, hasn't it? I can taste my breath behind this mask The sweet bitterness of cold brew and hazelnuts As I run out to replenish my dwindling stock And the masses cast their breath about As what feels like the ninth Once-in-a-Lifetime event draws on I amble about in the dreamscape that must bind me It'd be too much to admit the virus won And the base emotion of humanity is selfishness It's been an odd dream, hasn't it? Time to break the set down, that's a wrap As I haul hundred-pound bags of gear down the stairs Job well done, let's get a beer But the celery with these wings is limp and pale It had to be a dream, of course A fairytale ending for a fairytale meeting? It just wasn't to be, and thus the last time I packed our gear Was the last time I packed our gear It's been an odd dream, hasn't it? "Do no harm," your oath declares But where does that responsibility end? An infantile dream for an infantile mind How often do you remember your patients? Thousands, if not tens of thousands Must pass your eyes in the blink of an eye If the son of a soldier died when you turned away Would it even be vaguely your fault? It's been an odd dream, hasn't it? That spring would be nostalgic if it wasn't so bloody Slaughtered dreams lay at our feet, nascent and raw The setting sun had never felt that way before As a dying honeybee foreshadowed the months to come "I'll make it past this." "There's something at the end of this tunnel." "It'll all be worth it in the end." "I can't give up here." It's been an odd dream, hasn't it? Good morning. It's time to wake up. Bad dreams again? Get back in touch with your doctor, it's happening more often. What did I gain by dreaming? What would I have missed taking that plunge that day? Are three video games and poverty wages all that can be mustered? What stands to be lost returning to the skyline view seven years ago? And what's to be lost finally seeing the view from halfway down? Good morning.