i think i have reached
the point where i finally
feel at ease with myself.

i have found my peace
and quiet and now—
now i’m on my way home.

my heart has never felt this
soft and light before
and it is so worth it.

Happy are so many memories...
But better still is the instance from which they are born.

You get lost navigating the corners of your emotions
Some days you’ll read a poetic interpretation of happiness
And you’ll be restless, just like the words described
You don’t know how the walls of mixed emotions could stand so tall
But now you’re here waving a white flag
Hoping that the windows would
Stop caving in.

But even you know,
That once you’ve surrendered yourself to your heart
You would feel whole again
But it’s the feeling of being lost
In a maze of emotions

Where purpose resides.

Have you ever done enjoyable work,
But toward supper time,  
After a long, long day,
A satisfaction sets in,
Almost a fullness,
A readiness to stop for the day...

I know this feeling.
I understand Robert Frost's poem,
"After Apple Picking."

I loved haying on the ranch,
But after 14 hours' roaring up and down
Long alfalfa fields,
I was content,
Ready to shut down for the day,
Ready to climb down from the old John Deere,
Ready to walk, dusty, to the old truck
Waiting in growing darkness.

I recall listening for sounds of night coming on:
Crickets rasping against the cooling day,
Nighthawks' screeching, veering for insects,
Soul-mourning cries of coyotes,
All teamed against the ghosts of day:
Tractor's roaring echo in my ears,
Thumping memory of lurching over clods,
Dust clogging my itching eyes and throat....

The old tractor, too, was content
Sitting silently,
Cooling in the twilight.

Kindling a purr...
Stroking the cat's back softly
Contentment ignites.