Live to Love

(listen:
you can hear life calling)
a gunshot rings out in the midnight silence.
the howls of collarless dogs promptly follows.
screaming.
              crying.
                        pleading.
another gunshot echoes down the impoverished street.
                                    bawling.
                                                sirens.
                                                          life.
(look:
you can see life beckoning)
images of war and oppression play on the nightly news.
reports of violence and murder keep us watching.
misfortune.
                bloodshed.
                                death.
stories covering global calamity follow the commercials.
                                          oppression.
                                                          terrorism.
                                                                        life.
(touch:
you can feel life passing)
a sallow hand strokes its newly-bald head.
lashless eyes stare at the surreal face swimming in the mirror.
confusion.
              denial.
                        despair.
chemo flows intravenously into a young girls arm.
                                    acceptance.
                                                      hope.
                                                              life.
(love:
you can share life's beauty)
under a moonlit canopy, a couple kisses for the first time.
a groom watches his bride walk down the blessed aisle.
warmth.
            affection.
                          intimacy.
a father's video camera records his sons first birthday.
                                        devotion.
                                                      meaning.
                                                                    life.