I was a child,
and you, an injured swan,
resting by the lake I skipped stones on.

My parents didn't notice when I took you in.
Children don't have much,
but I thought that all I had was enough

To heal you.

So, under the cover of night,
I wrapped my sleeves around your wounds
And you wrapped your wings over mine.

But everyone knows that mere children
Cannot care for a living being
All by themselves -

All by myself.

And my tiny room was nothing
Compared to the skies and lakes
That you loved.

They say children are observant -
at least I saw your sadness,
so I took you

Back

To the lake where we first met
and there I told you
To fly.

I was a child,
and you, a graceful swan,
soaring from the lake I skipped stones on.

in the thick grey fog
my compass turns endlessly -
may i return home?

The leaves fell gently, golden
on the first day
of our autumn,

while the past crackled
beneath our feet,
swept away, forgotten.

Your camera stored our moments,
caught the snowflakes,
froze us in time.

And when they were nearly frostbit,
your hands found home
entwined with mine.

But just when spring returned
my fear formed clouds
of acid rain -

I only knew how
much I'd lost when
silence fell again.

Clear as the summer sky,
I knew that we would
have to part,

so I pressed your final flower
into the notebook
of my heart.

-

The forest clearing
of our autumn
holds nothing at all

but a whispered wish
in golden winds
as the leaves gently fall.

Take me back to that
tower in the woods.

Threading our way around the trees,
we'll see their canopies from the sky
as the rain falls around us.

And even when lightning lines the clouds
with silver, and the thunder rumbles
with the beating of our hearts,
we can be silent, and smile.

tonight, everything is normal.
the crickets chirp, the traffic hums,
the children work at problem sums.

adults, too worn out to act formal,
leave their work-shoes at the door
and heavy hearts upon the floor.

while the buildings blink asleep
and the clouds dapple the sky,
wind carries tired thoughts up high.

a thousand secrets the moon keeps.
a thousand wishes the stars hold,
burning silver, red and gold.

tawny owl, take my message
through the forests lit with white,
to the one who gave me light.

tawny owl, have safe passage
over the shores that oceans kiss,
to the one I'll always miss.