In the End

In the End

"It's about the same in the end,"
He said
" Depending on when the end is, of course"

He spoke of cars,
Whether to buy or lease,
From the dealership down the road.
He was, for the most part
A practical, detail man
Not tending to the profound
Or poetic.

But in the silence that followed
His casual, wry comment,
His words circled each of us,
Conjuring countless judgments,
Calculations,
Wild guesses and wishful hopes

From shoes to lovers,
Appliances to careers,
How much of the choosing
Was due to careful thought,
What measure of impulse and hunch
Wishful thinking,
Or impatience and fatigue

And how many
Of the costly, desired and transitory
People, places and things
In our lives
Had anything to do with care
Or carelessness
In the choosing,
In the unforeseeable
End