Place

There was a stream I loved to walk into

Cold water screaming at my ankles, then calves...black rubber tube... I laid back in its welcome circle warmed by the sun

Extended my legs

and said hello to the big blue sky that made me dizzy with clouds that floated by

not sure which of us was moving faster

Water surface like keen jeweled light

tip toeing then dancing comfortably to its own secret rhythm

ordered by wind and melt then sent from far away

Bumping from rock to mossy rock

Pushing off from deeper sides, rich smells of soil sliding from the edge

and lush sweet moss

Water the color of leaves and tree roots breaking down

Rich glowing amber 

Around the bend small gray birds lift up when they feel me coming and water follows from their wings

a new stream caught in exquisite light

and a moment

that settled inside me 

and remains

This Likeness

This Purpose

You told me that you were afraid that your life was not on schedule

That the course was not clear

You could not picture yourself in a place

I listened to your worries but

I know I never had them, until I had daughters, because I let myself drift along until I bumped into you,

I was young then and my heart was open

You took it over from the moment I knew you were there, resting and growing in my belly

waiting for your time to arrive in my arms

 and now I want so badly to tell you how wonderful it is

to have come to this place and time when each day is recognized as a gift

not always wrapped neatly

Sometimes the hands that hold it ache or tremor

Not just from angst or anticipation

Mostly my breath is taken away

By the measure of who you have each become

Like it or not

The purpose of this life was to bear witness

to possibility

and not just my own.