Early Morning Lessons

Seagull on green grass
Snowy grey landing with grace
More rain to come today

Plump crow on a fence
Takes time to taunt a squirrel
Minding his own mind and path

Speckled gull and black birds
of a feather feast upon
Human offerings left on a park lawn

Raindrops drip from gutters to ground
Leaves whisper before they fall
Early morning silence is silenced by a crying seagull

The Chinese woman won’t smile at me
Walking past me with a mask of a hard life

The path of leaves that camouflage the sidewalk is ablaze
With mottled pieces of fire and gold and crimson
Expressing a beauty that combusts the biting cold

Nature can be cruel beauty in odd moments
Always honest being what is season by season

My prayer this early hour is for gratitude for the approaching storm
That comes to cleanse and nourish as much as it comes to disrupt and energize
That I accept all that comes and pass the tests before me with grace.

11.12.11
9am - Crossroads Park, Bellevue