for Charlie
We are discussing the origin of the universe
Some billions of years ago
And the appearance of Lucy the Hominid
Some millions of years ago.
As if we can comprehend such a span of time
We humans who have existed
Some thousands of years now.
Truly it is astounding how much we know.
And yet what little we know
Compared to how much we don’t know
Like the brief moment of our lives
Compared to the immensity of the universe.
I point out that as many people are alive today
As all the people who have lived and died before us.
The modern world with all our inventions
Has become the majority human experience.
The discussion you started leads back around
When you were seventeen and thinking on everything
You thought and thought and decided
There’s no way you are going to find the answer.
I think how well that not knowing has served you
All these years into your eighties
You are still curious to know what is known
Even as you give yourself over to the mystery of it all.
