Life in the Recent Past

I know this is not now,
But a mostly helpful
Model made by the brain
That creates me daily,
A full world to live in,
A fair facsimile,

Fed by the richer world
That I will never know,
Never be. Yesterday,
Sequoia played bongos
With me in the front room,
On empty plastic cups,

She'd dragged from recycling--
Old yogurt containers
And butter tubs--pounding
Away, dull hollow thumps,
Great fun for both of us.
Today, recycling's done,

Bags of glass and plastic,
Stacks of cardboard loaded
In the back of the truck.
I sit out in the sun
Trying to be my life
Piling up, spilling out

Of the world that I am,
Recycled container,
Smelly remnants, red words
Slapped on to label things
Soon to be melted down
Again by the hot days,

Already here and gone,
What is because it was,
And yet will never be,
Life made oil made cup held
Words held oil ran out got tossed
Made waste made drum toy fun.