Of Portents and Auguries
April 19 2023
There is no crystal ball.
No reading of palms
tea leaves
entrails.
Prediction mostly fails
because the future is unknowable.
Death and taxes, they say,
are the only certainties.
And, as well
that men will always be at war
somewhere on the planet,
the rains won’t come
or come too late,
and love and pain
are inextricable.
Both of my long-lived parents
slipped into dementia
as they entered old age.
So, is this where I'll end up
in the fullness of time?
It can't be said for sure
but the odds don’t favour me.
So I pay my taxes
contemplate death
keep my mind active.
The fortune teller said
I'd meet a stranger
receive good news
find a treasure from my past.
Nothing about confusion
or acting out.
Then took my palm in her hand
and foretold a long life.
Which is what we all want to hear.
Good news from a stranger, I thought.
What more could one ask?
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