You’ve been warned.
You’ve been told.
You’ve had explained to you
over and over
and OVER again
what needs to happen
– what you need to do:
get moving
get in the game
get the lead out.

You need to stretch,
they said,
you need to do more.
You need to do something!
You need to get out of the house.

And you open your eyes lazily
and you acknowledge the instructions
and you turn off the TV
and put on your shoes
and open the door on one side
then close it on the other
and you’re out.
You’re moving
you’re transporting yourself
you’re on to something.

You see the streets
and the clouds
and the sun burning down
and you feel the beat of your feet
as you pound down the street
and – are you melting?
You may be melting
into some puddle of sweat.

So you enter the cool shelter of the library
with its free flowing fountain
and knowledge dripping down every wall
and you wipe yourself down
and you head to the graphic novels
and you look at the manga
and you catch up on Ranma 1/2
as you find a seat
and expand yourself into a blissful state
of learning
about other cultures.

As you turn the pages backwards
acknowledging your accidental education
you grin and realize, "Hey!
Mission accomplished.
I guess I got in the game."