it wasn't long--
maybe five or ten
minutes--
before the words
tumbling in my head
started trickling out

little pieces of
the weather,
the pulsing
in my aching feet
a trickle of something
--perhaps--
inspiration
that fragmented against
my teeth

1. Feet

Feet that move
down the path
do not think
daily about the
purpose of their
movement
until the day ends
and the tapping
of busy steps
subsides

2. Winter Walk

From the Darkness
Rises a Light
Standing strong
Pure and Holy
The Shadows flee
Terror in their eyes
For this one cannot be chained

Dance with me, elegant shadow!
take my warm fingers into your cool palm,
dance with me, dance with me, shadow!
across the moonlit lawn

Dance with me, bright-eyed shadow,
and spin me through the pale light
of the clock-face and star-falls
of the first autumn night

Dance with me, fleet-footed shadow!
Let the music be our guide,
let the notes of the bat-calls keep ringing
as they flit beneath the sky

Star-strewn, it glitters
blackened, and bright