Conversation

(To my friend Larry with a smile)

And so they conversed -
The true artist and the artist-at-heart -
About the peculiarities of Life,
Utility versus futility,
And material versus real.

And having agreed
That life is only experienced
Through openness,
They opened up to each other
And let each other see
About as much
As one can see through a full wine glass.

And they spoke about the soul,
And the mission,
And the meaning,
And the end of all things
Except the energy of the universe,
And our being the accumulation of all things -
Mirror reflections,
Past, present, and future,
Winter and fall -
Although somehow they forgot
Spring and summer.

And they toasted to each other,
And thanked each other,
And read poetry out loud,
And cried, and laughed, and drank, and swore -

Until she got distracted by a text message,
And he, by the engaging conversation
With the guy drinking next to him
About the irresponsible dog walkers
That don't pick up their shit.