A Song Of Sorrow & Joy

for Skye

Ah, sweet suffering, the ache of hope.
      A rope-bound Jesus singing –
The end of a summer fishing trip
      on the Galilean shore.
To this wooden autumn:
      brown stained with red.
Then the emptiness of winter –
      and yet, so white with a silent light.
Into a spring equinox –
      bringing fire to cool roots.

A Moment In The Evening

I stood in my garden addressing the blooms of the sunflowers.
Off in the distance I heard the 5:57 train
              driving in the tides of the city to this suburban shore.
I paused and thought of the things that matter—
              My wife – the hymn of the summer songbirds.
              My children – their first breath like this summer day.
I harvested yellow squash, ate green beans and sugar snap peas.

A Dream

with Christopher & Benjamin

We would row a flat-bottomed boat on the wings of Silver Lake –
              Circle the belly of this open sanctuary
(Harboring the likes of speckled trout and painted turtles)
              Steer north to the island heart –
Where canopied green adventure awaits sure feet,
              Boat settling in sand—
Minds trawling the mysteries of water, air, and land.

The Ballad Before The Storm

Adorned is the lake in a garment of light –
Glimmering silver even at night.

Whether in shadows of night or of day,
The water as thought will swash and sway.

Bend, will the reeds at the southern shore –
At the whisper of wind, the envoy of war.