James Moore Poet Narrative

The Root of All Suffering

The root of all suffering is striving
For something we aren’t or don’t have.
Desire per se isn’t the problem at all
As it’s just a natural response to being alive,
But attachment to that object of desire certainly is,
And yet attachments can be good,
Such as the attachment to being alive…

But striving for something we aren’t or don’t have
Implies a basic dissatisfaction
With what we are or have,
And this implies a basic misunderstanding
About what we are and the nature of things in general.

Things are just things
They come and go,
And obviously they don’t always come,
But when they do,
They also always go.

Who we are is more of a mystery.
And I wouldn’t want to spoil that mystery for you
So I’ll leave it at that.

But exploring and discovering more about it
Is, needless to say,
The sine qua non of being human,
And yet all too many haven’t figured that out yet,
Which is acceptable for children but not adults,
And in fact may define what it means to be adult.

So, Life; living, eating, drinking, breathing, reproducing
These are the obvious givens,
And yet the mystery of it all
Remains hidden and illusive
Waiting to be discovered in our own way
On our own terms
And thus remains always a mystery
Always just beyond thought,
A something that isn’t a thing,
At the tip of our tongue,
At the periphery of perception
A Deja vu we have dreamt a million times
And yet still can’t grasp.

The solution?
Obviously simple;
Don’t think about it,
Stay so busy you don’t have the time or energy to.
In this way satisfaction comes effortlessly
As the by product of simply staying alive.
Work or play, what difference does it make?

Not enough you say?
Well then, enjoy your suffering!

(8/7/25)

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Kim Rodrigues August 8, 2025 at 9:28 AM Loved your end line! I see that it is harder with grief, divorce, relationships. Still, we can look around and see people who have it even harder than ourselves!! Be in the moment, be alive…get off our butts and do something kind and not just something to get revenge (in some fashion). Over time you see, if you’re looking. Let us close our eyes (on our death bed) fully satsified that we gave our all. Your words are better than mine. Hugs, James! Well done! James Moore August 8, 2025 at 3:13 PM Absolutely! And your words are better than mine Kim, as they flow with a passion, like a stream breaking through a gap in a tall cliff! All the best to you!