(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.