There is a path that I walk on most days.
It winds through a pine forest that rises
high above me and speckles the sun,
lighting up the still world around me with
jagged streaks of light.
The path does not end.
It travels in all directions - up hill and down.
It is filled with muddy puddles after a rain,
and In the spring, flowering trees dot
the pines with wondrous color,
and I have reason to breathe deeply.
The path makes me question, at times, just where I am heading.
I often plow through the puddles like a gleeful child at play -
hang from a tree - or pick a buttercup and put it under my chin as
I did once - when I really was a child.
Then I wonder where to turn.
I will walk this path until it finally ends.
I will savor every mile and every adventure it brings.
I will think of people far away and people close -
and people who have chosen to be neither in my life.
No regrets and no fear as I walk further and further away
from my birth.
______________________
Painting: Bev Doolittle
Comments
1 - 11 of 11
-
It makes me want to be there with you, to enjoy the serenity and beauty of it all..You inspire me!
-
i felt as though I was walking along with you, feeling the crunch of the snow, wondering how far ahead of me was that bear, feeling the companionship of a kindred heart yet lost in the solitude of the moment.
A beautiful piece, John and the accompanying painting enhances it's meaning.
love and
Dee
-
To read the poem is to walk down a path which requires no destination to be enjoyed for what it offers along the way to whatever is ahead. This may be read as a simple idyll or a multi-layered metaphor, and it engages the mind either way even as its images engage the senses and its rhythms the beat of the reader's heart and pace of his strides.
-
Very nice. I like the first two lines especially.
-
Very introspective
Reminds me of a lot of my times of solitude on hiking trails. Life has it's paths, I haven't always
taken the right one but it's true we walk further
from the day of our birth with every step no matter where they lead us.
-
i could relate to what you were saying in this piece completely. i like the essence of it.
-
Very reflective...pensive. I enjoyed reading about those single moments when an environment can cozy up the thoughts and take us somewhere. Very classic in its execution. Reminded me of the old poets.
The reader sees how the author will look into things in depth and give the audiences a chance to do the same next time they travel...
the path.
Very good. Thank you!
-
Beverly Doolittle is a great artist, who plays with the observer. Note the grizzly tracks going up the hill and the very quiet Grizzly, herself, waiting patiently in the brush for those who might follow.
Highly recommend her work. -
I read layers of spirituality in this. It breaths of certain confidence. I often pray that God will show me what His intentions are for me. . . and as you I continue onward only I think I end up plopping face down in those mud puddles too often. Love your ending. Great piece.
~Mary O
-
Maybe someday I too may follow that path
for it "appears" much smoother then the thickets
off the path, that I now travel...
Happy 2009
Eddy
-
Shades of Frost
What a wonderful walk in the woods. I love how the forest speckles the sun - an unexpected turn of phrase that is so descriptive. It contains so much wisdom and acceptance, helping us - the readers - to see our own path and to accept that it will end, yet encourages us to savor every moment, to treasure people in our lives whether they are present now or not. Joyful acceptance of what is. Thanks for the reminder.
crystallady
Adding your comment:
1 - 11 of 11
