I finally had a chance to post the poem I worked on during my recent trip into the mountains, and hope my readers and visitors will enjoy this brief video.
Here is the text of the poem, so you can read along as I recite it. Enjoy!
The Only Light in the Wilderness
The embers of the nightly fire burn slowly and silently before my weary eyes,
As I eagerly seek the light within, hoping to illuminate my thoughts at day’s end.
An occasional pop of trapped air or moisture in the dwindling fuel pierces the darkness,
As the glow from the embers oscillates in a mysterious rhythm.
Even though the night creatures murmur and click in unison with the night,
There is an absolute silence surrounding my heart and mind–
Sounds from a great distance mesh together in a barely audible symphony,
As the night ascends into fullness–a rising tide in the absence of discernible sounds.
You are there with me–softly and sweetly locked in memory–though far away.
Filling the gaping holes in my lonely vigil at day’s end, you settle my soul with a distant hope.
Nothing requires our action or attention, and no limits exist to dampen our spirits further.
There is only the realm of possibility to contend with at present, and it cannot be contained.
With darkness enfolding my body and my mind, I cannot see beyond the orange ember glow.
I cannot turn the night into day, nor can I illuminate the future for anyone to see.
All I know for certain is that the temporal darkness cannot now withdraw, nor can it last,
And as my body succumbs to sleep, thoughts of you will be the only light in the wilderness.
John's Consciousness 