Loon Lake

Lake water shivers in the moon's regard.

Silent floats, its ruby eye a fallen star,

Silent as the floating face above, and hard,

Hard to shape, a grey loon in the dark. Far

Joys, almost forgotten, breathe a name,

Answering my whispered prayers for tame

And calm remembrance. Pain. What to say?

Heedless, kneeling in the dark, I stay.

Keep stillness at the core of things,

Heart's silence strong as hovering wings.

Eternal now, without a sound, the loon,

Too suddenly is gone beneath the moon.

Empty of all futures, kneeling in the snow,

Remembering, I watch the silence grow.

–Fall, 2000