Amid the Debris

I do not live in such a place as the picture, but I live there in a state of mind.
 
amid the debris of my life  
it is a strange and beautiful night  
bayou water in the moonlight  
shimmering in the low-lying mist  
I like it here  
alone  
with only my thoughts  
listening as creatures call out greetings to me  
or maybe they are warnings instead  
an owl hoots  
fish breaks the surface of the bayou  
goes kerplunk  
back into the water  
the charmed moon is bright Halloween orange  
hanging low  
o'er the swamp where I sit  
 
its at times such as this  
that I am as one with it all  
pleased I've discovered things  
about myself  
I never thought possible  
in those other days  
past days when I made all those many stops  
to drink my fill  
at what life offered up to me  
I hear a quiet rustling in the foliage behind me  
a nutria, maybe  
I don't allow it to disturb my peace  
for peaceful is how I describe  
this quiet time  
on the bank of this bayou  
in the moonlit night  
memories come into play  
some make me smile  
some do not  
still, they are all part and parcel  
of who I am  
and I have made peace with all of them  
 
I was made to set sail  
o'er the bountiful land  
seeking enlightenment  
as sure as the day becomes night  
and the nights gives way to fears  
I walked my mostly solitary road  
stopping to take what was offered  
lingering for a while in a good place  
before moving on  
searching  
always probing  
ah, I've found what I searched for  
this bayou  
this heavy, pregnant moon  
my thoughts are good  
days are numbered  
I'm unafraid  
my, my, just to think  
it was all about this  
all those many, many years ago  
that I searched  
 
©February 2, 2017 / Jerry Pat Bolton