Kurt Philip Behm

The Last Cut

Life’s ending is short,

its beginning unknown

 

The middle is long,

chasing stone after stone

 

Memories most vivid,

from decades ago

 

Feelings now drifting,

like wind driven snow

 

Our seconds tick off,

as minutes run down

 

The big picture fades,

tracks left on the ground

 

Beginning or ending,

the next step unclear

 

The last cut the deepest,

—to suture or sear

 

(Villanova Pennsylvania: April, 2017)