said a thousand-mile journey begins

with one step. And he said

if you don’t change direction

you may end up where you’re headed

and that a good traveler has no fixed plans

and is not intent on arriving.

Language and culture aside

it seems he would have fit easily

into a 12-step group, perhaps amused

the steps were numbered

and repeated again and again,

maybe the two hundred thousand

or so times necessary to walk

a thousand miles twelve steps

after twelve steps would feel right.

But he would know if we kept going to ruin
as we were when we got here,
without turning around we’d get there,
whether we started at rock bottom
or pretty well functional.

And he’d have known when we walk

into the rooms and change our direction

we’re going to get to the goal we seek,

to restoration to sanity, to a recovery

beyond our wildest dreams. All we need do

is to not turn back but keep walking

one step at a time one day at a time

then doing it all over again.

And enjoy the journey,

because the destination and the past

are not things we can take care of

today.