i have never understood the symbolism behind
the crystal ball in times square and
why it is so revered
what those thousands of onlookers wait for
every december 31st is beyond me
(did you know it’s not a seasonal decoration?
it remains there year-round)

i never understood what it could mean
beyond materialism & a message
look at how we choose to appropriate
our city budget when there are
homeless people on every corner and
a growing waste-management problem

and so i set aside my cynicism and look
(figuratively and metaphorically)
into the crystal ball there and see
or at least try to see what it means

and it’s there that i find it
perhaps we are all that crystal ball
rising and falling every year
lifted, raised and then dropped
fragile all over but still unbroken

no matter how many times they cheer
for our demise, countdown to our sinking
over the horizon like a great sun
we will rise and be seen again

and that merits a toast