Alex McLean's "join" is a short, quiet poem about giving in to something you swore you'd avoid. The opening image is striking: a plant caught fire between the speaker's fingers. The poem never says what the plant is, but the speaker's talk of falling "down this hole" suggests some kind of habit or escape that has become hard to resist. That reading is an inference, though, and the image could point to other struggles too.
The speaker feels regret, but also a tired kind of acceptance. "We can't all be as strong as we wish" is gentle on themselves, almost an excuse, almost a confession. Hope is still there in the idea of one day living out their daydreams, yet the final line shuts it down: "that day isn't today." The mood is sad, resigned, and honest. The trailing double period after "daydreams" makes the thought drift off, as if the speaker can't quite believe it themselves.