Reddening light from the window drew me

just as I was about to start dinner.

On the warm round of the driveway,

I sit for the evening show.

Black trees across the street—

backlit, a golden sky glow.

It happens every day

final glory before the lights go out for the night.

Today, I’m different.

I showed up.

Mosquitos nip at my ankles.

Potatoes need shredding.

The oven needs heating.

I continue on my way to the mailbox

(the practical reason for going outside).

Hands full of ads, my attention goes east.

Is that the surf ripping along the shore?

I’m sure of it, but I can’t see.

Something else surprises—

a giant pearl resting in an opalescent shell

light-tinged clouds—

moonrise.

On the sidewalk next to the mailbox,

I am poised

observer of three worlds

rolling in harmonious circles

endlessly about each other

through black space.

On the shoulders of a giant,

privy to heavenly beings,

I barely comprehend—

I am kin!

Frailty falls away.

As I am witness,

I become the fourth world.

-November 16, 2024

Photo by Ganapathy Kumar on Unsplash