With a sigh and a limp I walk
By the riverside
Seeking an oak tree
I once sat under
There I pondered
And wondered
As the wind rustled the leaves
And the water rushed by
Where my own river might take me
What towns and banks
And trees
I might pass by
And now I have seen them
And known them
And seek again that oak
Where first I wondered
I have listened
And I have seen
And I have felt
And yet the twisting boughs of this tree
Continue to elude me
I would be a leaf
That I might fall every year
And each spring
Unfurl anew
I have wandered often
In the streams of stars
That glow behind my eyelids
And there marveled
At the softness beneath my feet
Only found
When ambling amidst the heavens
I climb a high hill
Knotted with shrubs
Littered with leaves
Where grasses do not grow
And at its peak I catch a glimpse
Of a bright shore
And a sparkling ocean
And I make my way there
Feet bleeding
Tears streaming
But smiling
For it is in sight
Aloft go my dreams
Into skies of countless stars
Where heroes walk
And poets write
And explorers seek the horizon
There I find that purpose
So often hidden here
The sun sets
And I do not retire
Lying instead
Beneath the starlight
Wondering what tales the unnamed stars tell
Pining for their songs
Their histories
The untold moments of the lives of bodies unseen
And as I wonder
A star twinkles
Whispering
Of secrets
No one else has heard
I wish for slowness
For the flitting bolts
That are my thoughts
To ease
To follow winding lanes
To break at the switchbacks
Along the path
Up this mountain
The birds chirp and chitter
As the sun peeks out
And the wind blows brisk and wild
Bringing word of change to come
And the leaves and petals
Listen
As do I
Bright music is playing
Yet I cannot hear it
For my ears
Are turned
Toward thoughts that do not subside
Twirling shadows that infect the corners
Of my mind
A Poem A Day 