I threw away the map

The map read….

S
A
D

On July 4
you will be sad.

And for about 15 years
I followed that map,
manufacturing
tears
during
fireworks
displays.

I understand why the map appealed.

People
stop
and
listen
when you tell them your mother died on the 4th of July.

Your
map
activates their maps
when you tell them you were only ten years old.

You’re seen?

Sometime in my mid twenties, I recognized the map was not taking me where I wanted to go.

I wanted to enjoy the fireworks!

So I ditched the map
and drew a new one.

Last year I saw fireworks in San Diego.
A couple speaking a foreign language stood in front of my family.
They were happy.
And so
was I!

A moth is a mapmaking creature. When it flies into a candle it is working from an erroneous map. Perhaps the moth’s map says something like, “Mating opportunities here.” A human is also a mapmaking creature. Everyone operates from a map, and the map is always getting out of date. ~John Tarrant—Bring me the Rhinoceros

Are your maps taking you where you want to go?