Pond
a box turtle’s shell
barely breaking the surface
gently making waves
a box turtle’s shell
barely breaking the surface
gently making waves
As midnight’s tide ebbs
The wet sand saves our footprints
But for a moment
We of painted clay
Molded from the living earth
Destined to return
Birds take flight en masse
Forming paintings in the sky
For just a moment
Smoke borne on the wind
Transporting me to the hearth
Of my childhood home
Final autum leaves
Serenely drifting downward
Seasoning the earth
Iridescent swirls
On the film of a bubble
Dance before bursting
The vessel broken
one soul escapes to freedom
with a final breath
The outside world
Muffled by the gentle sound
Of the falling snow
Our love together
Once bathed in fire, now kept warm
By an ember’s glow