Dangling Carrot

[carahmellow]

I have been sitting here trying to write my explanation of this poem, and to no avail, I keep failing. It's my thoughts on desire and the human condition... this idea that we need to want something, but also not have it at the same time... to keep us going essentially, to give our existence meaning. The dangling carrot idea. I just can't seem to get it quite right. It's that problem I'm sure you have all had where you try to fit a big idea into a little poem... and it's hard to do. Any ideas would be great. I am my own worst critic, and when I have an idea... I obsess for WAY too long. I should probably just put his poem to the side and come back to it another day... I have read it too many times, and now it just sounds bad to me.... we've all been there.

Dangling Carrot

Purpose comes
with a goal in sight,
and belief that
attaining it
will make things right.

Desire drives motivation,
it gives you a game to play,
but you would not 
want to play the game
if the reward 
was taken away.

If you obtained the reward
without the work,
it also 
wouldn't fulfill you,
because the game is also a perk;
an activity 
that holds value.

The reward is just a goal, you see—
an absence 
to drive your soul.
You need to want to have the gold
while also 
having its hole.