As If

 

How many of us

are living life 

as if 

there is no God?

Even if we pray, 

the despair in our voices 

reinforces his absence.

As if 

he's

a delinquent father 

we'll never be close to. 

 

What if we were to wake 

up one day 

lying on the outside 

of ourselves?

Spontaneously ashamed, 

embarrassed even, for living

as if 

we are unloved, 

despite how many

may or may not 

have reached out

toward us.

Would it still be

an acceptable posture 

to maintain?

 

As if 

we were tramps 

homeless in a rainswept city. 

As if 

we were tourists

wandering a Roman ruin.

As if 

nothing added up 

or possessed any meaning. 

As if 

we were lost children

feeling our way 

through the dark.

As if 

we don’t belong anywhere.

As if 

living a nightmare 

we cannot wake up from.

As if 

we were deaf, 

dumb, and blind.

As if 

we weren’t here 

for a reason.

As if 

 we were beggars 

in a house of plenty.

 

As if.

4/12/24