Everyday Poem

Shakespeare asked, "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?"
But the best advice I ever got was to compare sparingly
Or choose to compare in a holistic, comprehensive way
For it is tempting to look at those who are stinkingly happy
And time reveals that the simple ways are the best
Like neighbor helping neighbor, or respecting each other
As happens in a hurricane, a tsunami, terrorist attacks ...
When everything falls into perspective, each sister and brother
may be different -- yet we see beyond these facts
At times of crises, we look for any human being:
It matters not if they belong to a specific religion,
a specific creed, a specific ethnicity, only having
one human heart, and two human ears that listen
more than they speak, or advise, or ask for change
Time reveals that all other wealth and family are thin
Who we are by name, fame, color and profession
Are tested, always, by what we call Providence
or God, or happenstance and economic depression.