Ox-Press

Drinking
Sobering
Drinking
Sobering

Cycle upon cycle —
Waking
Sleeping
Waking
Sleeping

Eating
Excreting

Holding
Releasing

No escape —
And all of it, what for
For whom — to what end

Chasing
Finding
Chasing
Finding

Is any being
Ever free
From the cyclical —
One cycle or another

Thinking they move
Forward, onward, toward —
When they only turn
Round and round

Is this how it goes
From birth to death

Trying to escape
One cycle or another —

Trying — failing
Trying — failing

Giving up
Trying
Giving up — trying

Still thinking
Of moving forward —
Towards something
Yet always turning
No escape
From turning

Like the ox —
Of the oil press —
Moving, never moving on —

Why not, then —
Let it be
Drop it
Surrender —
Just surrender

Everything —
Just be the ox
One step and the next
Step after step
Breath after breath

Pain or pleasure
Boredom or joy
Peace or misery
Right or wrong —

Just be the ox
Forget or remember —
What does it matter
When you are bound
To move
To turn

Just be

Be the ox