Collecting Failures

I saw an old woman today, hunched over, meticulously sweeping her driveway,

I imagined the dirt bits she was trying to gather, as all of her perceived failures, what she considered ‘mistakes’,

And with each tiny, inching sweep, she was careful not to let any get away,

Instead, collecting them all up into a neat pile,

How did they manage to get to her back, I wonder?

Referring to the obvious hump on her back,

It was obvious to me, it symbolized the burdens she still carried,

After all these years,

It wasn’t lost on me.

I couldn’t help wondering,

When do we stop sweeping, collecting,

And let nature’s gust of wind, blow it away?