I Shall Not Want

We were both seniors, but he was some 21 years my senior. Ken was A most dear friend who passed away a couple of years ago. I was spilling my heart out to him one day as we drove along in the vehicle. As I continued to utter my obvious frustrations over things I most did not WANT, Ken popped the most pointed question when he asked me, "But what do you WANT?" It was clear as day what I did not WANT; but what I WANTED was foggy and misty. For a moment, my soul seemed to have stood still as I pondered the fact that I did not recall anyone ever asking me, 'what I really WANTED'. Either they did not care or they could not see in me any sense of deep personal desire. I think that it was the latter. Ken had not only 'words' that ended in a question mark. That poignant question had a quality of tone and a heart of compassion that registered from him to me like none that I had experienced. I have experienced multiple seasons in life. Call me aimless, shiftless, and lazy if you will, but I was compelled to look inside my soul and conclude that I WANTED stillness, ease, silence, poise, calm, peace, and a cessation of dedicated activities and involvement. I WANTED more of what Ken and I were about on that particular day. The two of us were part of a men's breakfast that came together once a week for breakfast. Beyond the breakfast, our entire affair was a morning about anything in general and nothing in particular. It was 'much ado about nothing'. And in this season of my life, that was what I really WANTED most. 121922PSCtest, Our Soul’s Wish List Poetry Contest. Unseeking Seeker