A Question Never Asked
By John Herlihy

Let us now pose a question never before asked,
A question that lies behind a forbidding mask.
If the soul is eternal, never before in time born,
Does that mean that we are from eternity torn?
If we know the idea of eternity as well spoken,
Does that mean at our birth eternity is broken?
The hallmark of humanity lies in the life of soul,
To partake of an eternity that is uniquely whole.
But if we are suddenly thrust in the midst of time,
What then of the eternity that I claim to be mine?

Let us ask ourselves this question one last time,
By way of speculation, the answer entirely mine.
If my soul passes back into eternity when I die,
What right do I have the life of the soul to decry?
Curiously, we already live in the eternal moment,
Time but a relative thing that needs no comment.
Eternity an idea having seized us beyond measure,
Motivation of mind we hold as precious treasure.
Perhaps life is all the eternity we ever need to know,
It seems like we live forever, a gift of God to bestow.

It is a truism to note that nature asks no questions;
But prefers quiet reticence only to make suggestions.
The sun does not ask whether to shine on my crown;
Trees reach to the heavens without looking around.
The stars glow in the night against a blackened sky;
Earth routinely turns on its orbit without asking why.
Thunder asks not of its sound, nor lightning its flash;
Storms show their nature without being called brash.

Perhaps some questions should never be asked,
Life has enough mysteries, do not take it to task.
I am already convinced there is still much more,
Many more mysteries to uncover from life’s store.
Did my soul exist before my outer body was formed,
There in eternity, before my body the soul adorned?
A chimp may have questions when it sees a flower;
Never expect an answer that seems beyond its power.
Let us not ask questions that lie beyond our grasp;
Let us pursue the imaginable, awaken and hold fast.