What Is Consciousness For?

I have nearly a hundred senses but 
they are unused. Let me name now a few:

The moon reflects my emotions--look up!
I can walk for miles and still recite poetry.

Water shapes the hands that cup it
just as birds shape the wind in flight.

I can read an entire book and find one 
paragraph that makes the reading worthwhile.

My grey hair and beard makes me look 
like Methuselah drives a pickup.

Still methinks some of the Greek gods 
walk among us but are disguised.

My capacity for hope is the same for love--
for every broken promise, two hopes rise to replace.

Experience explains more than reason 
but reason gets all the attention.

Most cages don’t have walls, bars, nor wires.
Most people live in split-level homes of thinking.

Fear-facing needs to be taught along 
with reading, writing, and arithmetic.

Conversations have lost their value; 
they end up in a box under a “Free” sign.

Intimacy is the gold standard of belonging--
without meaningful touch, nothing else matters.