poem

 The Undefined

Death is dividing by zero

Life is one over infinity

But first you must learn to count

Start with your fingers, an abacus,

Piles of stones.

Patterns emerge:

Base ten, even and odd

Over and over again.

Soon you’ll be ready

For the higher maths.

Prepare yourself!

It’s like nothing  

You’ve ever seen before.

On the final exam

You have to prove that zero

Is the midpoint of infinity

And whatever you score, of course,

Goes on your permanent record.

Soon and then later, a new math is emerging 

Where you’re a tiny 

But very important variable

Etched in chalk on a giant blackboard

Teeming with inscrutable equations

Whose solutions can only be seen

By someone standing far enough away

2/11/26