DOUBLE CROSS

Our being here at all and knowing it
Then knowing that we know, is that which makes
Us human, thus presumably more fit
Than other kinds in whom awareness wakes.

And yet this extra knowing seems a curse,
For we alone must wonder why we’re here,
While others just endure their lives, immerse
Themselves in presentness, in joy or fear.

But we, compelled to contemplate and dwell
On purpose, meaning and the worth of all,
Have conjured images of heaven and hell
And dream of our ascension or our fall.

     Our double knowing seems a double cross
     To bear: to know our having and our loss.

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