Life

A breath exhaled is vanquished

It's gone for ever more

A fleeting, brief existence

In life's ever changing score

A bud begins to open

It blooms and then it fades

A violent burst of colour

That rapidly degrades

A seed takes root, a lamb is birthed

A coral's gametes spawn

But every infant's dying

From the moment it is born

Cells are shed, bark is dropped

Baby teeth come loose

The same is true for bird and beast

From dinosaur to goose

Rocks erode, glaciers melt

Dark clouds drop their rains

Even empires rise and fall

Like blood flows through their veins

Stars are born from clouds of dust

They burn their white hot core

Then go supernova

And turn to dust once more

Yet each day dawns anew

And the earth turns on it's axis

the only certainties in life

are death and paying taxes