When did my life become a list of to-dos,
of timesheets, contingencies,
attempts to please yous.
Don’t relax, check your exits, must stay on your guard.
There might a test, a review, stiff report card,
which shows where you’re slacking,
behind, below par,
a nuisance, incompetent, disruptive behaviour.
Don’t rest for a minute or take time out for a drink.
Don’t you dare eat that sandwich or forget to think,
that at some point in the future
someone wanted a snack,
that you didn’t conceive of,
you deserve a good whack.
You must keep things moving,
plan, sell, buy, or make.
How dare you neglect me,
you ratfink, you snake.
Are you warm enough, cold enough,
satisfied with my work.
If you need anything, holler,
it’s all part of the perks.
Never-ending my service,
past, present, or future,
‘Sure, I can do that’
my most saleable feature.
Fast forward to 40,
I’m so tired, exhausted,
famished and greying,
can’t bend down on my knees.
But what can I get you,
Tell me, it’s no bother,
Anything at all?
I can see to your needs.
But what if I stop..
let the bags fall to the ground,
turn the gas off the stove,
mute my screen with no sound.
Will the world come to an end,
will I call forth extinction
from asteroid, famine,
like dark science fiction.
Will the sun stop its shining
or rain fall up from the ground,
if I don’t answer emails
in my inbox I’ve found.
Will we see bright green goblins,
the earth open up
to swallow our whole house
in one bone-crunching gulp.
Will I fail to see heaven
because my list’s incomplete,
we’ll be starved, cold and hungry
while I rest up my feet.
Should the life of an adult
feed on effort and strain,
it all comes at a cost
that I cannot maintain.
But for now I keep going
I just pick myself up,
sign that form, make that call,
clean that tea-stained chipped cup.
With so much to do
I’ll give all that I’ve got
til Life screams in my face -
I implore you to
STOP!