Every choice I make

Every choice I make
destroys
all but one potential universe
brings them crashing into nothing
so many dreams lost forever
so much that could have happened
and never will

Every step I take
forms a line on the surface
of a three-dimensional world
always leaving so much
I can never see or touch

Every day I live
leaves so much undone
so many beautiful friends
I will never know

Every day, every step, every choice
I create one jewel of a universe
a precious present moment
and forever fading memories
a commitment to life
to here and now
not knowing what's behind the next hill
but still walking towards it
or not

I need such incredible courage
to destroy such beautiful universes
to let go of choices now in the past
to go one way rather than another

without this courage
this necessary sacrifice
of potential worlds
without the choice and the step
I would have no universe and no life
instead of the beautiful ones I have

So I only have one universe
the magical power of creation
at my fingertips
in the soles of my feet
in my gut from what I eat
a chance smile
an always imperfect conversation
each one destroying more universes
than a science fiction movie
while quietly creating
this one world I live in
here and now