little by little by bit

this humming grows swelters 

wanting to be fed, demanding

a response.

so when the wise have been questioned

by the idealistic

on how to live well, on how to conquer a good life

they begin to sing softly

under their breath,

their heartsongs

in response.

confused the students of the wise stumble away

angered at the perceived silence and unconvinced.

They scowl and feed the growing buzzings and hummings

meeting its demands for knowledge and wealth

and filling their faces and voices with the expressions and words

that the hummings require.

They live like this for awhile, tossing late at night, turning, and tossing

and wondering if tomorrow they will have enough left to devote to 

satiating the hunger.

Then the idealistic, after time, if fortunate, become wise. 

They realize nothing can satisfy, nothing can fulfill or cover the emptiness that loudly demands to be filled.

and instead they begin to fight.

They let the other sounds, the ones so easily ignored and overwhelmed by the distractors

slowly come forth

their time is now filled with observation and joy, the quietness of integrity and truth in living,

and this, as is only learned by experience, is what they do when asked by the idealistic how to live well.

they smile softly, and sing their heartsongs, the only ones that can quiet all of the noise that tries to take over. nothing can conquer life, but the heartsongs,

these are the life.