Inside the Wind

By Sharon Whitehill

Transparent. No color.

All layers moving,

A palpable presence.

Face forward. Step out

In the swirl,

Let it push you

Into any direction.

Be fed by the wind

Like a guttering flame,

Like a gathering storm,

Colossal, demanding.

 

Find a fencepost

To grasp while you

Feel a gust unbury

That inner ache,

The way sunshine through rainfall

Splits light into colors

Arched over earth.

You need only

That moment of grace

To be carried

Away on an updraft,

Your mind floating free.

 

Wait for an image

Borne on the breeze.

Ride above it, a petrel

On fishing patrol.

Catch it from scudding clouds

Where old dreams sail past

From the years of your life

Still shining with stars

Like a cathedral dome.

 

Let go of the fencepost.

Move with the wind

As fallen leaves do,

Refuse nothing.

Be buoyant. Leap the waves

like a child in the surf.

No. Float. Stay aware.

Receive. It will come.

 

Sharon Whitehill is a retired  English professor from West Michigan now living in Port Charlotte, Florida. In addition to poems in various literary magazines, my publications include two academic biographies, two memoirs, a full collection of poems, and three poetry chapbooks. My latest, THIS SAD AND TENDER TIME appeared (Kelsay Books) in December 2023