nothing could reveal quite as much abut his flaws,
than the box of five hundred straws
grab one to drink his water with ice,
and a stirrer for dissolving protein was also quite nice
the marginal cost of two
because there are countless others in view!
why should he worry about three?
when there are still hundreds of others to see!
but perhaps he will stop at four
because removing the wrapping is quite a chore
the upper limit is most definitely five
when there are still five times that alive
because to purchase such a thing anew,
was quite an easy thing to do.
whittle away in impress it did
as there were no barriers placed on its lid
akin to pulling just a little on a magic string
to decide what season to actually bring
when under the warm blanket of snow
he pulled a little for the promise of spring glow
when the buds were not quickly enough seen
a deliberate touch would make it green
and of course excitement of summer days
would end with his sweat beads of haze
because he was sure that the fall
truly had the wantings of it all
and so the seasons would high and low
never a friend, always a foe.
he could not realize what he had done
until in his box there was only one
no more freedom to choose and date
this one left was his final fate
and so a deafening sadness he felt
to be playing the cards himself had dealt
but his despair was replaced with glee
a simple and clever solution, he could finally see
his ruthless consumption no longer a blur
his straw usage a well-defined, act of stir
you see, dear reader, the box never really was sparse
because insight to this future he could parse
it was when quite a plenty was left
that he saw his wasteful use as theft
each straw was not a faceless thing
but a promise of much happiness that it could bring!
if he took proper care of each of the bunch
he might never run out, was this clever hunch
and so life continued in this way
devotion to his straws he did not stray
and outlive the straws his time, he did
without the need for top, restraint, or lid
nothing could reveal quite as much abut his flaws,
than the box of five hundred straws
but nothing could reveal quite as much about his soul
when living for each moment became his goal
Suggested Citation:
Sochat, Vanessa. "Straws." @vsoch (blog), 17 Jan 2015, https://vsoch.github.io/2015/straws/ (accessed 16 Apr 24).