Virtue

I’ve been thinking

how life is short and

how to live it well

I’m not thinking

of sins and virtues or

the seven deadly habits of

highly effective people

I mean happiness --

like seeing –

how big is the sky,

the bullfrog

come from the bottom

of the backyard pond

to feel

the soft spring rain

on her horny head,

the man who works so diligently – on what?

in the cubicle down the hall,

how my whole body softened

at that baby’s smile

beneath the framed glass

in my allergist’s office, and

my friend’s smile even after

the bike accident

broke bones in his face. 

Some days I see myself

wanting to stay in bed

coveting someone else’s life

peeved

full of me

with appetites too big to quench

and then

I remember

this one beautiful day

waits.