Two Explorers

Two explorers rest for the night

In tents below an endless sky

These two best friends slumber

Dreaming of adventures

In far away lands

Forging a future for themselves

Crossing mountains and valleys

Rescuing friends and finding treasure

Knowing the other will be there

To help them along the way

Just two best friends

Getting the sleep they need

For the excitement tomorrow brings

Spirit of the Storm

There was a flash of light

A resounding boom

And all was darkness

As echoes filled the air

I could see nothing at all

Ears filled with the relentless storm

When I saw your face

There in the darkness

I could hear your voice

In the falling of the rain

Like a sweet song

In a world where nothing remained

So I let it wash over me

Holding me in the still of the night

I let it embrace me

Though the rain was cold

The touch was warmth to my soul

No darkness could overtake

The light of your presence

Consuming me utterly

In that moment

Nothing else existed

Nothing else mattered

That phantom in the night

That alighted my soul

Overtaking every sensation

Was everything to me

And when the light of dawn broke free

And I awoke to sun and sky

The memory lingers still

Cherished in my heart

Forever and always there

The spirit of the storm

Jesus Killed in the Street

I am thirsty

This was the cry that went out

As he died

The forces of oppression

Bearing down

For no other reason

Than that they could

And a man was dead

Murdered in broad daylight

Because they could

A life was taken

For the sake of order

Peace was not found

In killing this man

There was no justice

Simply malice

In the hands of the powerful

And I'm left to ponder

In the still of the night

The case of a man on a cross

And a man crushed in the street

And I weep

In retrospect and remembrance of George Floyd.

Dirty Laundry

As I move the clothes to the dryer once again

Just to move another load into the washer

I am thankful

Thankful for laundry

The task I often lament as endless

The one that sees me empty one basket

Full of clean and folded items

Just to fill it once again with soiled garments

But still I am thankful

It means that tomorrow

My children will awaken

Bright and renewed

Happy and smiling

And will put on clean clothes

I’m thankful that they have those clothes to put on

That they will wake up to that small blessing

Though I may at times take it for granted

In this moment

I am thankful

As I dump out a basket

And take my place in my kingdom of vestments

I’m thankful for each memory

Remembering the activities of the days

The joys of little ones going out to get dirty

Knowing all too well

That these clothes will be exchanged

For larger sizes

And new tastes

That someday I will only fold my own

But for now I am thankful

Thankful that I can provide for my children

To give them the clothes

That let them wake up

And start each day fresh and new

With new adventures in store

Going out to make new memories

So as each memory is folded and tucked away

Neatly back into the drawer

And new ones piled up again

I will always be thankful somewhere

For the laundry

Still Me

A cloudy night

Nights and days running together

Hard to keep track

Hard to concentrate

Feeling alone

Has never felt so lonely

Memory drifting

And a longing remains

Waiting for the clouds to lift

Revealing a clear sky

And a bright tomorrow

But for now I wait

Trying to remember the day

The week

The month

Temporary solitude

Is still solitude

Even the words struggle

To become a thought

To become something

More than a jumble

A cluster of memories

Flowing together into dreams

Dreams that are fleeting

And sometimes I wonder

If I'm becoming muddled

Jumbled fragments of me

Trying to remain a person

And not just a concept

Is it an existential crisis?

I cannot say

As fragmented thoughts

And partial memories

Float about my mind

Is this new?

Or have I just begun to notice?

I close my eyes

And I recall my face

And realize I'm still me

I'm still here

Whoever that may be today

Through the confusion and pain

I am still here

I am still me

Echoes of Memory

The chill air filled with falling rain

And the thunder calls your name

Just as it always has

Just as it always will

Always calling you back to the rain

Always calling you back to the storm

Chasing whatever it holds

Never knowing what that is

Just knowing that you seek it

I hear your name on the wind

And I wonder where you are

And if you still hear it

The way that I can hear it

Or if it is just the echoes of memory

Summer Breeze

You danced through the forest of my mind
Like a leaf caught in a summer breeze
Not as a memory reflecting in a pool
But something from the here and now
Beautiful as ever I watched you glide
The wind lifting you over any obstacle
Your marvelous form carried along
I followed you with my eyes
Mesmerized by all that you are
And as the wind delivered you
Out into the open meadow airs
I got up to chase after the summer breeze
Trying so hard to not lose sight
Of the most beautiful thing I had ever seen
Praying even just for a moment longer
That my vision could be filled with you
And a longing filled my aching heart
That if I could catch you for a moment
I’d never want to let you go
Afraid that the summer breeze would stir
And remove you from my eyes once more