Her

author’s note:

I often end up cutting my favorites lines:

She will sew me back up
but I must first guide the thread
through the eye of the needle


HER

I write to honor a woman
who hides in full view.

Though I learned of her years ago
and know the value
I often ignore her--so easy to do--
after all, she’s so commonplace.

Whenever I lose her
she merely watches and waits
as the sand leaks from my sack:
she will mend me
but only when
I open to her again.

Some will laugh
at my rhapsody
and claim
they don't need her.
But I’m not fooled--
I’ve known their poverty:

I once tried
to leave her behind
because I thought
I needed to be tough
in order to make this trek
across the desert...

but finally I felt so empty
I had to stop.
Then in desperation
I recognized her again--

I saw her sailing
in a flotilla of clouds
luminous in the sun

then in the cloud shadows flowing
across the brown plain

and as I witnessed
those glorious sights
I felt her strength
surge back into my heart.

At night
she beams down upon me
from the eye of the moon

as I nestle into a boulder
shaped like her hand.

Some meet her by blessed accident:
a burglar opens a window to steal a jewel
but finds a star in a clay jar instead

then allows himself
to experience a perfection
forgotten for too long.

Poet, Heal Thyself: poetry ebook
© 2021, Michael R. Patton