Everything 

(for Tasche and Leonard)

I dreamed that I was called upon to assist

Leonard Cohen in packing for his last trip.

When I arrived, I kissed him

on the mouth like an old friend.

He was dressed in monks’ robes

looking uncomfortable in this skin.

It surprised me when he began to throw

piles of possessions onto the cot:

One, two, three suitcases

and endless unkempt wads of gear.

As I untangled the knot of stuff

he told me about his obsession with

accumulating athletic hobbies

he dreamt one day of trying.

So, in went the kayak, running shoes,

the rugby helmet and bowling pins.

I packed his bags, more magician than pragmatist,

as he stood by, small and humble

and folded his hands gingerly.

“They tell me,” he said

in that honey-lava-chocolate-earth voice,

“that I should choose one and focus,”

his smile was audible in the creases of his face,

“But Everything is all I’ve got.”

-Andrine de la Rocha

1/2/17