Progress

A flower does not need to win.
A raindrop never wonders,
"Am I improving?"
Evening breezes have
no destination.
For the moon, growing full
is not progress,
waning is not loss.
Creatures burst into what they are,
sometimes softly,
sometimes with the fury
of a thousand suns.
Those who insist that everyone
is already enlightened
just the way they are
miss the point.
Each particle of earth and star
immaculately vanishes
the instant it appears.
The royal moth
doesn't have much time
yet is not in a hurry.
When you are ready
for that kind of peace
all you need to do is
refrain from perfection.