I have a container
to keep things I collect
sometimes randomly
often deliberately
and at times
someone else puts things there
and I have to decide whether to keep them
or reach in
and throw them away

I have a container
which seems to never run out of space
though sometimes it runs out of grace
for some of the things I put in it
damage it
and I get a little too protective

Still I seem to collect all sorts of things
from here and there
which always seem special amidst the moment
and some of them
get more wonderful with time
and the most precious things
are the ones that I want to share
so I look in, and reach out,
and place them elsewhere

it’s strange though
when I give things away
it never feels any emptier

the more wonderful things I get to put in my container
the more I want to open it up
the more I want to let other people into it as well
to add their own colour, their own experiences
and they leave behind some special things especially for me
and I will happily carry them
for life

it’s at once so real
and such a mystery
at once so whole
yet at times broken

this container
shaped like a heart
open
(c) Kent Langdon 2003