LOST AND FOUND IN A STRANGE LAND

I have been a stranger in a strange land
so lost at times that I circled past
the most familiar of markings,
as though flailing in a blizzard.
I have walked the streets at night
separated from warmth and home by locked gates
and the blue-light hum of the collective fable.
At times, not even the wind would keep my company
and I would have cried out in anguish--
a wolf howl, a manic yelp, a numb moan--
had I believed anyone could hear my pleas.
I have been such a stranger to myself
that the brightest beings inside me
seemed cloaked and gray,
as though trudging to a funeral.

But even in the darkest nights of my soul
there was someone else, steadfastly
lining the path ahead with warm lanterns.
When I was a mere ghost
this one left footprints on the earth behind me
and a trail of mossy stones ahead.
When my blinded eyes searched for my reflection
a caring hand wiped away the wrinkles of strain.
When my hurried heartbeat underscored the silence
some sweet angel offered a song of wisdom.
And when I had fallen
seven of them held me with arms of light.

I am trying to learn trust and patience
and I would like to be at peace with the winter's night.
As I do this, this strange land becomes less strange
and even its most haunting melodies
reveal a harmony.
The owl's screech becomes a doorway in the dark
and the coyote's yipe rises from the lake bottom.
Becoming quiet and aware,
perhaps I may more clearly hear
the melodies of myself
and glimpse the kind friends
who wait, with tireless calm,
for those who beckon.

We strangers are stumbling along the path
from dusk to dawn, from pitch black to golden light.
Have you noticed the shining souls, standing alongside,
blessing our travels?
They ask of us this: that we walk softly, that we learn to listen,
and later, to sing.
Their presence inspires nothing less than absolute trust.
For what else but a profound trust
brings the glow to the sky each morning
and spins the moon around the sun
in this magic dance?
Like the sunrise, may we awaken to a new and dazzling world,
and praise the strangeness
that led us to seek this new home.

(© 2003 Doug Dupler)