It would be folly to consider myself
where I ought to be, as if ‘ought’
could glow in your hand
like half-eaten candy thawing
memories under open clouds.
What hubris man to divine
import from earth-bound particles
bouncing among people walking
heads down, the center of it all.
Heavenly bodies revolve
around some other lantern
the same as me, sticky fingers
sweeter from the journey.
© 2020 Phillip Knight Scott
Written for today’s dVerse prompt “folly” and the Go Dog Go Cafe prompt “in your hands“
Often Mumbled Musings 
Love this!
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Very good, an interesting take on the prompt. Well done.
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I just noticed that ought is thought without “th.” No matter what thought and ought say, as you put it,
“Heavenly bodies revolve
around some other lantern”
where each of us are exactly in its light.
Wonderful poem, Phillip.
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I love the way you start this poem with ‘ought’ glowing like half-eaten candy and end with ‘sticky fingers / sweeter from the journey’. I also like the comparison of earth-bound man intent on something with heavenly bodies revolving around some other lantern – humankind always at odds with the gods.
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Ought; like a half-eaten candy… what a wonderful view.
No wonder we have sticky fingers.
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Enjoyed this. “Sticky fingers”, half-eaten candy, is all we really get though we try to divine our course in life. Doesn’t undermine the sweetness though.
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Love this especially; “What hubris man to divine import from earth-bound particles bouncing among people walking heads down, the center of it all. “
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Opening stanza draws the reader right into this. Fabulous job Phillip!
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I really like the feel of this poem… When we view ourselves from the larger perspective we are just dust in the wind! All of ideas of entitlement are truly folly! Well done!
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I feel like the sticky fingered journey of life isn’t necessarily what we think it “ought to be” but it’s still full of wonder and worth the ride. I enjoyed the images here!
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I love the jelly beans, and the message! There’s more to life than the rat race…
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Jumping from sticky fingers and sugary sweets to the cosmos and back again is an inventive journey!
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There’s something so beautiful about this poem, the way it dances with imagery. Wonderful.
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I loved this from the first stanza. Don’t know which I like more–the poem or the jellybeans!
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