THE TUMBLERS

The answers—

that is what I am looking for,

like a safe-cracker trying 

to suss out the right sequence,

the perfect combination that will

unlock the machinery that's in my way.

And I am listening, listening,

with every part of myself,

for the sound, the whispered music,

of the tumblers turning,

and for the moment when

everything clicks into place.

And when it does, and it will, 

that's when the mighty door opens

and there they are

stacked high like gold bullion,

the answers, which I recognize

straightaway as a fortune

I actually already had

but didn’t know I did,

because the way I was listening

kept the truth hidden

right where I couldn’t see it:

in plain sight.