He hadn't seen the cracks

March, 2020

He wished he could walk

with leaps and bounds
as if he is flying
occasionally
toe-tipping the ground
for yet another bounce
light as a feather and
free

now and again
his toes hesitate
and the bounce is
more like a hop

more frequently
recently
there is the occasional
stagger
sort of
breaks the flow

and the other day
like an anchor
his feet dragged
through the dust
till he ground to a halt

on hands and knees
he’s trying to remember
how to walk

-o-

Stop this rain

relentless downpour
washing all the colour
washing all the white
washing still when
all that’s left is grey

sheets and sheets of water
erasing his horizon
blocking out the distance
closing in and
hiding all the beauty
hiding all the dangers
all the threats

and the noise
filling his ears with
nothing recognisable
nothing to focus on
nothing that
allows him some space
to breathe

-o-

Prone

his face pressed into the ground
his arms shielding his skull
from cracking blows
that may rain down on him
he lies paralysed
flight no longer an option
his muscles no longer tensed

even the trembling has gone
to all the world
he’s sound asleep

-o-

Without tears

if he could
he’d let his tears run free
to cleanse his sooted mind
to wash away the thoughts
that are his pain

he’d let his tears
run down her cheeks
so she would know
and she would care
and she would comfort him

but he holds his breath
he bites his lips
his eyes squeezed tight

one invisible droplet
wets the corner of his eye

-o-

The blistering sand

exhausted
dehydrated
the rays of the sun
scratching
his blistered skin
his only hope
walking past the horizon

and he will

once his staggering feet are
strong enough
to carry him

for now
he'll just sleep
in the desert sand

-o-

He hadn’t seen the cracks

he was wrapped in total
absence of light
he was insulated
in a tunnel
painted black with darkness
its one dimensional confines
sensed rather than seen

he had sent his eyes
to scout for the end
for the light
but they returned
without an olive branch

he hadn’t seen the cracks

plodding forward
head to the ground
one thought
one hope
to get to the end
to get to the light

he hadn’t seen the cracks

but all around him
all over the snaking dome
cracks appeared
a random pattern of cracks
and the cracks were leaking
a minimum of light

and suddenly
quite suddenly
the tunnel stopped being
a tunnel
and the dome turned into
a mosaic
in grouting of light

and all around him
with a gentle rustling sound
the mosaic rained down
and a soft new light
took him by the hand and
set him free

-o-