Roman Ryan

They tell me that I cannot
Have it all
The cake must be et
Or had
And as I am no Antoinette
And do intend to heed the law
I shall consider this unfortunate phrase
Cliché among those sick of plural misuse
Of the word priorities

For how does one make a trade
Between two things one does not yet have
Perhaps it's meant to mean
That of the two things I now do poorly
Should I trade the dregs of one
To the other
I shall have a full cup of coffee

So there it is
Everyone knows
That even four half cups of lukewarm weak coffee
Are not worth a single hot strong one
With just the right amount of almond milk
Though they in the dairy industry may sue me for calling it milk

Nomenclature I will not trade off
For poetry feeds on the words prior
And writing becomes better of its moreness
Cycling and cross country skiing too
Feed upon their own repetition
But the arm wrestling match between each activity
Determines the depth of excellence in each

So call me a mediocre poet but never a bad writer
And fancy me an acceptable cook but never a bicycle slouch
Ask me not for furniture recommendations
But for books you must first pick a genre
The field of exchange
Of time
Of energy
Requires much negotiation
And renegotiation
For exploration
And attempts
And a little perseverance from time to time
Leads to a flourishing trade