The box

You live in a box
with levers and pulleys
actions and reactions
predictable and 'safe'.
A choice here leads
to a consequence there
and the gears turn for everyone
just as they do for you
   And that's just the way it is.
 
How do I begin
to help you see
that "the way it is"
is just one way to be
That the machine is man-made
not a mandate of nature
That all is not lost
and we can do better
     But not in our comfortable box.
 
I refuse to just sit
throw my hands in the air
and declare it all shit
There's a good world out there
It'll take screams and groaning  
to birth this new thing
But we have to be willing
to imagine it exists
     Somewhere outside the box.