Cam Miller | CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Fact to face

Death
is a fact of life
that, with each breath,
runs rife
through one’s thought
— and still closer comes —
yet it brings naught
to the sum
of defense
against its threat;
freezes all sense
of getting set
to face
its impending visit
at slightest trace
of last minute
— Perhaps
because we hope,
barring mishaps,
we could cope
by making amends
for all faults
ere the end
brings all to halt —
yet start
not, even,
one’s heart
to leaven
while time’s sands
continue slipping past,
trickling through one’s hands
until the last
possible stage
— never
admitting age
lasts not forever.