The sun and moon rose and set 8030 times before you were born
And another 7300 before we met
And only 50 times while you were here

But what are numbers

50 sunrises that I noticed
that I was awake for
that shined its energy upon me
which seemed to nourish me
to bloom again
I wonder why I never saw the other 15,280

But what are numbers

Unless you count the days and nights I don’t hear from you
But those numbers are now
More numb than the first few days
And at times those 50 we shared
Gets blurrier and distant

But what are numbers

Unless you count the times
My heart ached and choked and slowed
As I tried to make rhyme or reason
Out of those 50
Which seem to not matter to one

But what are numbers

And I suppose 50 out of 15,330 is
Just a blip on the radar screen
And that the other 15,280 should count for more

But what are numbers

And I suppose that the estimated 31,025 times
You will see sunrises and sunsets
Will mean more to you than the 50 we shared
Or so it seems since you stopped including me in those numbers

But what are numbers

So if you take the 15,280 and divide that by 50 we shared
Really means that those 50 missing meant nothing to you
But
I have to ask why those 50
Seem so more vibrant to me than the other 15,330
I saw before your 7300 that led to our crossing paths
And
If you take 15,330 minus 15,280 that leaves 50
That I don’t understand and may never

But what are numbers

Those 50 to me were days filled with dreams
I thought would make the other 31,025 different
But it seems that those 50 get lost within
The sum of it all
And end up being a minus for one

But what are numbers

Unless you are using the numbers
That travel down cables and poles and underground
To my phone that is now
Silent

I have to say now

What are numbers that don’t matter to one?

01/12/2005

Posted on 01/13/2005
Copyright © 2024 Mark Maxey