I wonder why I have I been saved for this.

Joy withers under the weight of this latest wave of sadness

Do my tears please the powers that be?

Am I expected to pay for each smile that escapes,

with the appropriate number of tears?

The demanded compensation

For the briefest moment of laughter

Threatens to bankrupt my heart

I can’t even imagine the misery

If I was foolish enough to fall in love

The cost would seem to be beyond my means.

So it is that in my life

I stride and stagger along my path

Searching for a peaceful respite

Between abundance and famine