The Uncertainty in the Certainty

why do I want
to understand myself
and be understood?
why do I want to make sense
of everything that flows
in, out and through me?
why can't I simply be
like that pod on an ancient tree,
bursting from its seams
to release its seeds
on the wings of love,
in every season,
knowing
that some will sprout, and
some will crumble and die
in the warmth of certainty
in the uncertainty
of a compassionate earth.

Knowing

and when you ask me
how I know what I know,
what to do and where to go,
the black ibis rise in an instant,
in one glorious symphony
from the still waters,
and head somewhere
into the fading light;
a black ribbon changes shape
with every passing moment
in the melting blue,
floating into and with
the uncertainty and certainty
of yet another triumphant night,
and one more blessed day,
proclaiming my place
in the family of things
that are born to be wild.

When I Went Looking for Joy

there was a time
when I went looking for joy -
in the forests,
in the mountains,
in the flowers,
in the sky,
in the ocean,
in the moonlight,
in the music,
in the whys,
a joy that was elusive
like a mirage on a long drive,
or raindrops that vanished
in the steam of the sky,
she was never there
where I looked,
and always there
before she was found -
like a one year old
playing hide and seek
never hidden, and so
never found!
and then I found her
right here,
watching me grope around,
what a fool I had been
to look for her
in the 'Lost and Found';
and so I learned
to play her game,
without questioning
or taking sides,
to dive into the space
between knowing
and not knowing,
for that's where she hides!