Joy

One of my early attempts to express the inexpressible.

There are some things
in this world
that break my heart
not from the sorrow
but from the joy they bring
and for brief moments
I sense
that the deepest longings
of my whole being and life
have been touched.
But as swiftly as it comes
it is gone,
like a sweet fragrance
riding on the breeze
tarries only long enough
to awaken awareness.
It is a joy so deep, so rich
and so satisfying
that to think it something
I will one day possess
seems wistful and foolish.
And yet it is simple,
like the innocence of childhood.
It costs nothing,
at least nothing
this world could offer.
It is not found
in this world at all
though sometimes
a musical sound
or a picture
or a child’s voice
or the sparkle of sun on water
or the sweet fragrance of a flower
or the brilliant starry sky
of the quiet of twilight
or the soft roar of the ocean
reflect small glimpses
of a greater joy.
I know that the object
of my desire
is not to be found
in any of these things.
I know because I have looked:
Under closer examination
the reflections
which once brought joy,
lose their luster.
Only memories remain,
and these quickly fade.
It is becoming
more and more
apparent to me
that I have
longings,
desires,
hungers
and thirst
that this world
and all it contains
could never hope
to satisfy.
Coarse imitations abound,
but they would only
leave me empty.
Though some things
in this world
sometimes give a glimpse
of ultimate joy,
they are not in themselves
what bring joy.
It seems that they only
point towards
something greater
which abides not
in this world.

The dreams I have never dreamed

I have to return to those lands,
to those weary lands I once had known.
I have tried many times to leave from here
only to be turned back at the last.

Breaking free and emerging
from caves long inhabited
is a dangerous task,
but it must be done.

But listen out for those little spies
in the wilderness around your eyes.
They see and report back
and woe to those remaining in the forest
when the full force of their fury is released.

Evident is the motive of every prisoner,
when running swiftly,
heeding not the trees,
the limbs,
the toppled stones.

Run and don’t look back,
you’re nearly in the clear!
You’re swifter than you ever knew,
swifter than the very wings of your thoughts!

Lightning in the embattled sky
must redouble its pace to catch you, my friend,
my dearest friend, my fondest fondest friend.

Farewell!

I don’t count on seeing you again.

I’ll be fine, here among the familiar stones and trees,
the blank homes and the faces turned slightly down and away.

Don’t leave!

Not without me at your back.

I’ll follow wherever that same road winds, over the hills
and far beyond the dreams I have never dreamed.

You fortunate soul!
Fortunate to be so free.

The leaves still shake fearfully
in the wake of your swift departure.

I wish I had a photograph of that moment,
with you looking back with hand upraised,
with a wistful smile
but with no regrets among those tender tears.

Farewell!

There is no time left to me here.
All the grand moments have passed.
The gilded memories are already fading away.

Borne back upon the winds,
your sighs bring messages of joy, of joy
of somber, somber joy.

A cloud over the sun, brilliantly illuminated,
radiates the light in glorious, glorious array.

I turn away.

Lullaby

Quiet be all you oaks and maples;
pines and fir-trees whisper.
Crickets and toads, sing now your lullabies
with the warbling larks still stirring about.

Moths with lace wings, flutter you softly
in the light of the ancient array of stars
brightening and sparkling around the silver moon
serenely sailing across the night-seas.

Be hushed while weary minds drift away,
far away with the breathings of the night.

A smiling female face

A smiling female face
imparts grace
like a sky full of sunshine,
like wine.

Her lithe form is a song
walking along,
her eyes brim with a jewel-light
shining bright.

But when her fair face
is cast down,
when her lovely lips form
a furious frown -
when raindrops fall
from those overcast eyes,
the grey clouds overwhelm
my own skies.