when it’s time

kneeling, bowed head

nothing uttered

all felt

…

describing life and its

merry dance of thieves and joys

pockets picked, cheeks pinched

the rosy after-glow of loss and gain

…

shaken out blankets beneath trees

mystery of indentations past and present

who lay watching nests built

careful and with slow deliberation

…

before I lived how could I

describe the outline of love

moving in rapid sync as

tired swimmer in from cold

…

just as you give up on believing

raking autumn leaves, someone smiles

and breaking across their holy face

a connection of electric worth

…

for the lonely are not lost

they wander in search of hope

throwing sticks for panting dogs

breaking through water, flying in indigo bloom

…

a new season turns her heal toward sun

this afterlife will feel a familiar place

of lost faces, angels made of earthly composite

reflecting in the eyes of smiling ancestors

…

we will feel tears on our cheeks

burnished leaves falling in their spiral

where all things are forever and

the call of owls brings night fall

…
like a smooth glaze of assurance

tapping windows with sleet

closing up house, warm and merry

we step into the beckoning echo