Darkness evaporates
Into morn
Dreams dissipate
Plans borne
Days began with a shake
From my bunk
To swing a sextant
On the bridge wing
Eyes fixed on
Horizon and stars
Now her warmth bleeds
Into my eyes
Setting my heart
On fire once again
Confidently, I play
Right on her doorstep
Knowing full well
She is often somewhere
Else with someone else
I soak in the presence
Pacific Gulls and seals
Fitness freaks and
Dogs on leash
But mainly, the presence
Of myself
Torn between keeping
Surface undisturbed vs
Diving right in
Instead I gaze
Every passing day
Looking beyond reflection
Still waters run deep
When we meet
A standing wave
Between two tidal streams
Going different ways
Though loyalty shone
Like the morning sun
Some chose to close
The blinds to it
Treasure the friend
Whom you met
In the heart
Of the storm
Even if you never
See them again
As soon as you think
This is more than I can bear
Just wait
You will soon be given more
Silence is sweet vessel
For lost worlds of time
Words surround warmed
By captured sunrise
Naturalists live in a world of wounds only they can see
Aldo Leopold
In Braiding Sweetgrass by Robyn Wall-Kimmerer
He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother
Count the stars of heaven 