But Nothing Is

How does one measure
enough-ness? Existing
as the sum of
all
one would ever need?
I can little
ascertain
for myself if even I
suffice

It is a feeling
intangible as ether
only to be captured
incandescently
trapped behind a
blown-glass enclosure
trembling but with a
spark of verve
it glistens

Have you ever
captured a butterfly
Held its pulsing fragility
between two
Godzilla fingers?
that winged beauty and
my enough-ness
breathe the same air
through intercoursed lungs

Simply unfathomable
painful to ponder
letting it go

Matthew Ratz (he/him) has published several nonfiction and children’s books, and his poetry can be found in anthologies; also, his TEDx talk can be viewed on YouTube or at TED.com. He is a sought-after writer, speaker, and performer. Using his experience, his learning, and his ethos for the pursuit of inclusion and equity for all people is his natural way of being in the world.

Image by Ch Maheswara Raju, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons