Into the Bardo State

Into the Bardo state
I'm traveling east
On the ferry today
Hard on the heels
Of my mother's dementia

At the ticket counter
The assistant manager
Playing with crayons
And a coloring book
Said to me
You've got to be free

Then shaking her head
She muttered
Only on the ferry

Neither here nor there
In such a non-state
I came aboard and
The engines were
Already humming

Belowdeck which
I realized would make it
All but impossible
To know the exact
Moment of arrival
Or departure

So it is and must be
As I'm traveling
East into the Bardo State
Today on the ferry