(for Fukushima)
I
The earthquake jolts
below the need to conform,
urging me away from shore
toward the wave.
I want to cower, knowing
I will soon dissolve
in a future etched in water.
Just a little boat
and the tic tic
of a diesel motor,
sailing out to sea
toward the wave,
away from what
will be no longer.
II
When the land shakes,
the wind rises,
the wave breaks
and the sun cannot be seen
will you find me,
will you still listen?
In a sanctuary
hidden by the thinnest veil
we greet what comes.
III
Something lights the sky,
a wealth unmeasured
to guide us through the night
toward mercy
and the kindness
we’ll dance again
upon the bruised earth.
IV
In the dark before morning,
before the noise and confusion,
those precious moments
speaking softly
in the thread of connection;
I have not lost you.
V
Opening the curtain
a waning quarter moon
brightens the sky
while the stars wheel,
Earth spins with Her Sun
and the soft green of May
slowly rises.