After each catastrophe that he announced,
he smiled at the camera and said “Amen!”

Somebody from the Gone Beyond keeps tapping
us on our shoulder, but we pay them little mind.

When our merry way finally catches up with us,
we’ll wear a practiced look of feigned surprise.

We hope that life will improve for us, not realizing
hope is the last piece of mischief in Pandora’s box.

We hear things will change if we change the way
we look at them, though most of us just look away.

When we run out of things to look at, we’ll take
a pill and fall asleep, but there’s more to see and say.

In the dream, somebody strangely familiar is staring
back at us in a mirror, smiling and saying “Amen!”

Awakening in the morning, we’ll just shake our heads
and get ready to repeat the same day over again.

One of those days we may see that whatever we’ve been
looking for is actually empty, as is the one who’s looking.

When the 10,000 lies can no longer move or persuade us,
our hands will fold open in one silent revolutionary act.

Someone from the Gone Beyond will gently exhale,
then move on to the next waiting card in the deck.