"Twice upon a time"

Twice upon a time or space
some kind of place - name - game of life kind of event horizon
before sunup or after sundown on the backside in the dark
there for the first time again eternally
I felt it
the new snow
the spring breeze
the feel of her fingers in my hair
that first kiss
I breathe and blink my eyes
there with the grace of goddesses we fly
motionless suspended between the abyss
and the possibility of nothing
what was it about the moment that ceased to pass
the clock that never tocked
the river running backwards in the serengeti of my backyard
with the three trees planted when I was five
now beautifully in their prime shimmering so consciously in the light
of the moon and the smooth almost sand dune like quality of her skin
reflecting a time I thought long lost
These animal ways that lead us to waterholes
and mating dances on lonely peaks howling into the sky
and listening to the echo of our soul
as it manifests in myriad forms and dreams
which we gratefully call reality and memory
Oh if only but then not really perhaps or maybe
so decisive in our meanderings down trails well trodden
by ancestors unmet but felt in the design of birds nests
and other evidence of time's sweet secrets woven with
bits of string and other colorful artifacts and fictions
that we call history
Call it light and dark or heavy with potential
this cornicopia of bits and bytes this blinking
on off on off off off on off on on off this dance
of electrons flashing in the void of eternal daynight
the beat of our drumming hearts
the song of a thousand orgasms
all experienced at once in this large embrace
as we gently light the candle on the altar of our mothers grave
and bless once more the mystery of existence
the magic of breath
the power of love
and the freedom to be.


"Two Coyotes Howl"
Dan Mapes