Less is more

random thoughts
medications
travelogues
bank deposit slips
every note to self
or others
even memories and wills
handwritten
chicken scratch
from thousands
of tiny lead pencils
on backs of torn
scraps of paper
receipts old bills
paper bags junk mail
doesn’t seem to matter

neat worn rubber banded
stacks piled high
in corners closets drawers
and baskets
everywhere the eye falls
fragments telling stories
of a life lived
simply
within means
no media
social pressure
green sustainability
or undoing excesses
left behind
fought over
or forgotten
only simple honest common
sense

compassionate
ethical
responsibility
learned from elders
commitment
to life without waste
leaving nothing
to speak of save
the cherished wisdom
of life and liberty
like prophets of old
a way of life
rooted in reflection
and forethought
giving forward
from what has been given
whole in intent and action
as natural as breathing