By George

Look me in the eye—
Does it dart away?
Where’s the table?
Where was your face?
What did you say?
I’m listening, I promise.
What was that?
It sounded important,
I’m really trying to listen.

Hone in on the point,
Tighten the screws,
Narrow the lens.
Let’s hope this matters,
I didn’t catch the rest.
I do care about you—
About what you’re saying.
Does it seem like I don’t?
Do I seem insincere?

About you, I mean,
Not always your words;
They’re sometimes rather boring.
Do you feel this way too?
People do, I’ve seen it.
Others live somewhere real,
Where birds sing, trees hum,
And bees dance between flowers.
Wouldn’t that be nice?

But don’t worry,
Most people aren’t great at this either.
They’ve got history,
It fills in the gaps,
Makes sense of absence.
If we had more of it,
We’d feel steadier.
Let’s pretend we do
And watch this place bloom.