A Banaba Leaf Poem by RIC BASTASA

this banaba leaf falls from its branch
a child gathers it
and hands it to me
and i keep it
on top of my study

each day i look at it
like it is something so different
from the rest of the leaves

time shrinks it
time browns it
until its cells begin
to show its veins

until it turns to thread
crumpled pieces
until it turns to dust
until it becomes like the sands
of the shore

nothing lasts
in such a short time
the leaf returns to ash

on its last day
i gather what remains are there
on my palm

outside i sprinkle the leaf that
returns to dust
to air back to the empty space
back to the nothingness
our place of final destination

the world is hungry for this
dusts and sands
death to everything living