The Awakening
I finally made it to the top.
but the top turned out to be a dead zone
I succeeded in the game of control
only to discover the specter of my own dependency
I stepped joyously onto the world stage
only to learn it’s a very small place
I owned many costly and beautiful things
only to discover that they weighed me down
I socialized with drink in hand
only to end up feeling lonely in the crowd.
I awakened from this mindless direction of my life
shocked into awareness by its ego-driven passions
and was forced to confront the stark reality of my folly
I sought a new direction by way of a spiritual path
but as I took my first steps in this direction
I ended up just as foolish as before, thinking
“If I send out good, I’ll get good back.”
I eventually learned that the spiritual journey
is not a game of boomerangs, wondering where
I am, or clinging to things and people as ways
of filling up my emptiness – because emptiness
itself is the heart of the journey.