The Virus and the Web

The world we each live in
is made of everything
we see and hear.

Clamoring for attention,
ideas and images,
opinions and fantasies
assault us,
laced with joy or despair,
desire or anger,
jostling
for a central place
in our awareness.

And so,
we become infected
with the inner life of others,
a virus that circles our globe,
within this web
that grows around us.

Seduced by its power,
we forget to look in front of us
or inside ourselves -
a direct experience
of what is real and true.

And when we do look,
in the equanimity
of that peaceful place,
THAT is the best time
to plant our own seeds,
the viruses that heal!