now softly i step

my steps are becoming softer

still committed on my path
my voice seemingly more subdued
i guess that comes when other voices
are heard from farther and further away

small joys are in pieces and bits of visuals

that in my autumn years of life seem to be
so ever present and with a keenness, now,  
is my seeing of the ubiquitous colors, their
contrasts and symbiosis of the day’s early light

sometimes i lay coddling my pillow

with a feeling of not wanting to rise
to the seductive sprinkle of dawn
or the enticing splash of the sun and day
but only wish to lie here in the slumber
of the ritual called sleep and play in
the other reality of dreams

but then i remember the constant conflict

i battle within of my days journey to read
and to write in lieu of time spent walking
underneath the ethereal sculptures of
greys and whites that paint the sky
and the breezes that blow back the hair
on my two little family members that walk
with me in the light of day and under the stars of night

i praise these moments, these hours and days
of sight and sound, of taste and touch, of tears
when needed both of soulful stress and
heartfelt joy and the juxtaposed places where
love is found in the forest of nature
and the hearts of those that surround me
but most of all when with the one that has held me
for better or for worse until my soul does depart