Wasting Another Day

Consensus isn’t often
Reached by negotiation,
But that doesn’t mean it’s rare.

Consensus is more tidal,
Like the slow-gathering sense
That something’s falling apart

Or the rush of agreement
That something’s good in the air.
People know when the tide turns,

If not each one right away.
The last outlier isn’t
The one who lost track of time

And was stranded by the waves,
Which happens fairly often.
The last to join consensus

Is the old fool who measures
The turns precisely, again
And again, wasting the days.