[ NaPo 2017 ] A Matter Of Inches

  
I'm not exactly sure why
you  want me to clap my hands
and cheer  
 
You ran and jumped up in the air  
from that line to over here  
 
In the sand, you made it  
a few inches farther than last year  
 
Congrats for you?  
Hooray for Humankind?  
So many thoughts running  
through my mind, tripping
over the hurdle of how I feel
regarding this need to outdo
your own performances  
and others in contests  
that amount to nothing
more than beating an
opponent's score by measly
increments on a ruler  
 
How much money did you  
give to the homeless?  
How much time did you  
spend mentoring a youth?  
How much trash did you  
pick up along a highway ditch?  
 
So many actual real world  
accomplishments of which  
I could easily give a shit about