the importance of staying busy

when you
observe the insect
world and you
haven't had
a drink in a while,
but you are in
a pondering mood,
picking lint
off your black
sweater that you
were going to
wear out tonight,
you can't
help but notice
how busy the ants
are, moving tiny
pieces of crumbs,
from the kitchen
floor into a hole
near the baseboard.
the movement is
constant, and when
you lean really
close to them, put
your good ear
to the floor, you
can hear them
say, almost in unison,
with little ant
voices, i'm so busy,
i'm so freaking busy.
they roll their
little bead like
eyes and shake
their heads.
i've got to slow
down, this pace
is killing me. i
don't have a moment
to myself, i haven't
even had time to
pee the whole day,
and then the bees in
the hives, coming
and going, outside in
the bushes, making
honey, pollinating
all day and being
a nuisance with
their buzzing and
gossipy ways. their
high pitched voices
exclaiming with
exasperated glee,
oh my god, i'm so
busy, i have no time,
not an hour can i
call my own, just
look at my blackberry.
it's booked up solid
until the end of
time. i wake up
and i'm on the go,
from flower to
flower, from tree
to tree, from sunrise
until midnight,
everyday. i have
two hundred and forty
seven bee-mails i haven't
been able to get to.
fourteen more bees
want friend confirmation
on my facebook page.
i'm sooooo busy. dang,
you say, that's a shame
and yawn, and then you
look out the window
and see the squirrels.
and if you want to really
see busy watch a
squirrel for ten
minutes shucking
an acorn. i think
i need a nap now.
i'm exhausted from
watching so much
activity. maybe i'll
get busy later if
she comes over like
she promised.