Challenging Poetry

feathers or lead?

we calculate what our hearts owe—
a complicated equation that adds
income subtracts expenses for health
and children and education and then
multiplies and divides by
how much fun we had while working
and the net percentage of gray hair
and wrinkles increased
then factor in the number of butterflies seen
and rainbows followed and dreams
fulfilled, and factor out tragedies conquered
and storms weathered and
the dragons fought, whether successfully
or not—and then, when all the calculations
are over, and our hearts are
set on a scale to weigh against a feather,
we can't imagine how we don't owe more.

Prompt: April 15—Death and taxes