For the past year or so, I have been part of a creative writing group/class. We meet once a week, where everyone takes a turn reading their work, after which we can comment on the piece. Participants range in age from their 30s to the mid 90s! It makes for interesting stories and perspectives on life and the world we live in.

I had never really thought of myself as a writer/poet and I make no claim to fame, but what I write comes from my heart, my life journey, my love of nature. But most importantly, I’m having a blast putting my experiences and stories in writing.

This poem was written by me for one of the assignments. Enjoy!

The Calm After the Storm

Night is mute, untroubled

A great horned owl

Stealthily gliding through the darkness

Through shadowed trees, Wings navigating expertly

Silently searching unfamiliar territory.

Faint beams of moonlight

Peek out from behind the clouds,

In the rippling pond their reflections

Twinkle like tiny stars

Illuminating the water’s surface.

The air is calm, quiet, still.

A reddish dawn lights the horizon.

Slowly, the woodland awakens

The sun rises to the flutelike melody

Of a western meadowlark,

Perched on a lone fencepost.

Morning light accentuates, reveals

The forest’s night secrets.

And nature’s images in the vast canyon of time.

Reflecting, resonating, anticipating

The challenges of this journey called life.

Mindful and ready for each new day

The voyage through the vicissitudes of existence

Never knowing what next awaits the traveler:

Shadowed or enlightened territories.

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