The Gathering

The light is beginning to fade
at the edges of the sky
earlier and earlier
so that we might
begin to forget the longest days
gently.

The sun leaves us
with the heat of the earth
and we begin to gather
the harvest of another summer
into shadows and glass jars
like it was possible to bottle
forever.

Today you have journeyed again
to the ocean to swim with the salty waves
and play in the fountain of some other truth.
The message you send from that light, that ultimate grace,
is that you are gathering the bounty of the watery body
so that I may not go hungry.
You gather the essence of all loneliness
and fill it up with your enormous heart
and send it with blessings of abundance
to everything I have ever wanted.

What fear is there
when we share this feast?

What regret is possible
when you hold your hands out
willingly signaling a clear sky
and the path to all that is--
the fire of the gathering of good souls
who have lead the way
to the center of knowing.

I can only wrap myself in this promise of the moment
and bow to the warmth of your skin
against my skin
and know that we are awake
like the harvest
of light
into
the sea of stars.