First be lost
And know that you are
Know nothing at all
Except what is wrong
Strip down to the bone
Let delusions be dead
With vanities and falsehoods
Flung to the floor.
Be a blank canvas,
Innocence restored.
A clean page
refreshed and renewed
after troubles, by age
With vigilant care
be sure where you tread
A clear path runs
Directly ahead
You have to be no-one
To see who you are
when people talk of desire
they speak of fire and heat
but a fire can be extinguished,
in itself it’s not complete
desire is the beginning
the waking of stronger powers
that sweeps you off your feet
and put a stop to time
only when you are mine
that power comes with a passion
far beyond ourselves
it pushes, it tears, it’s agony,
it’s joy, it’s free, it’s sweet,
it’s the urgent demand of life
when the wind comes down from heaven
and whirls true lovers up,
groaning and gasping,
flying,
upward,
through the longing stars,
they cling with desperation
there’s another dimension
to the grip of their grasping arms
until they fall together,
soft to their tumbled bed
you touch my beating heart
we can talk
or fall asleep
we know we are one whole part
i feel such tenderness
it’s then i can stroke your lovely skin
and cradle your gentle head
excite me, ignite me,
never needs to be said
the fire of desire will return
we’ll go to heaven again
by a slower, gentler path
Sitting beside her hospital bed,
Holding her hand as she sleeps,
I close my eyes for a moment,
Tired. Only tired.
Nothing keeps.
I must look as if I am praying.
I wonder if I should,
But before I frame the words,
The answer makes itself heard.
It’s up there, in the title.
It’s the magical word.
I know it.
I hear it all the time.
I submit. I accept.
I bow low.
I follow the path of the flow.
from the dark the sunshine comes
and fades again to dark
in hope and loving trust we sleep
to greet the kindling spark
time brings change
i do not fear
i accept the hidden path
love is always here
and that is all we need right now,
high upon the bough,
to sit amongst your singing trees
in harmony and peace
Beloved World, take note of us,
thought we are fleeting in your eyes
we have fought to reach this place
the travelling made us wise
Peering ahead into sunlight will dazzle.
Searching the shadows and dark
Leaves you bewildered and blind.
Keep the fires of hope aflame
Seek the magical spark
Don’t get entangled
in troublesome briars
Honour the path you find
Live with a tranquil mind
In the centre of a forest
I find myself alone.
I am truly lost.
I look behind the way I came;
Broken branches, sodden leaves.
I crashed through there in dreams.
I hurt the wood.
I see no path ahead.
Night begins to fall,
no sky in view above. I stand transfixed,
the ground beneath my feet,
unstable now, green leaves above a pit.
I cannot move. No footprints lay ahead.
I can only wait, deserved and destined fate.
I ask the spirits of this forest
for a way to see the path.
I hear no answer, just the hollow echoes of my voice.
I will stand here in the night and wait
until an answer comes.
Darkness gathers round.
In the morning
when light returns
I’ll try to find a better path
and attempt to make amends.
Does the path through the woods feel my feet?
Does it care I am there, not lost?
I never sat down beside it and asked it
that question.
I only know it’s there,
seeming to beckon to me
through the trees
when I stray.
Whether the path notices me
or not,
I am still walking along it,
thankful,
I will never be
lost in the dark.
i made a long journey
like many before me
i had my fair share
of incidents, mishaps
some were of my own making,
others were simply there,
awaiting the unwary traveller
i learned much of the woods
how to read all the signs
and hear the approach
of the seekers of prey
i had little respect
for robbers and bandits
i had seen all their kind before
i held no vendetta against them
i dislike them neither more, nor less, now
than i did when i took to the road
i had made my own problems too
i wished to be left alone
sometimes yearning for home
it’s true
woods seem full of shadows
but darkness contrasts the light
and lets in the brightness of day
where is gleams through the branches
making clearer the safer way
i came to a clearing and rested
enjoying the peace,
listening to leaves sigh high on a breeze
above in the trees that whispered
if only i could stay
resting here forever
i looked at the paths leading on
it was a beautiful day
i felt some sense of completion
a sharp snap and an echo
the silence was gone
the sound of movement,
coming towards me,
secretly, fast
i felt a moment of panic
caught unaware
as they gathered around
to circle and slay me at last
calming my mind
i looked at the paths
the choices were many
which one should it be
i heard a signal
the voice of a raven
he stood in the sunlight
on a broad ancient branch of a tree
lit against shadow
by a path i instantly knew
it was as i had always imagined
well lit and wide open
it shone out beckoning me
nothing to fear any more
my weariness melted away
i saw i was home
this open wide path
lead straight to the door
where my soul awaited within
In the centre of a forest
I find myself alone.
I am truly lost.
I look behind the way I came;
Broken branches, sodden leaves.
I crashed through there in dreams.
Night begins to fall,
no sky in view above.
I stand transfixed,
the ground beneath my feet,
unstable now,
green leaves
above a pit.
I cannot move.
No footprints lay ahead,
no markers left behind.
I can only wait,
deserved and destined fate.
I call for help.
I hear no answer,
just the echoes of my voice.
I will stand here
in the night and wait
until an answer comes.
No choice for me in that.
Darkness gathers round.
In the morning  light will come
perhaps I’ll findÂ
a clearer, open path
when i am fire
i burn away anger
when i am tree
i bend with the wind
when i am water
i wear away stone
and know all the wise ways of flowing
when i am cat
i narrow my eyes
when i am dog
i am joyfully willing
when i am horse
i turn with the wind
this is my freedom in going
when i am hare
magic is mine
when i am raven
i watch still and clear
when i am wolf
i see who you are
this is the seeing of knowing
i will leap, bend and flow,
run, turn and go
return as i please
see what i see
magnetic paths pull above treetops
clouds cap the mountains that hide me
dark cool shadows in water
hidden things amongst leaves
as i make my own journey
i follow these old ways alone
water is a life giving blessing
the trees shelter us, breathing
the lone wolf protects the pack
energy runs with the horse
the world is mirrored in the eye of the raven
hidden, unhidden, bidden, unbidden
the hare runs the path of the circle unbroken
running fleet foot in pastures and hills
on horseback i chase the illusive hare
while the raven sits still in the oak
and watches, waiting for me
The Dreaming Path 