Pathfinding

In the name of all that is joyous to the heart,
Gladdening to the eye, and is kindling to the belly,
In the name of all that stokes courage,
Fuels passion, and promotes dreaming,

Even though we may get lost
By the stars in the cosmos we find our way,

Returning from deep inky realms
Where horses run untethered,
Frothing at the mouth, kicking meteors through darkness
Beneath their hooves,

Returning from shadows where though we jump
At the slightest rustle hearts pounding,
We open our mouths and call help from the gut
Sound reverberating in our throats then roaring out,

Yes, we find our way,

Though we didn’t convince our mothers
If they came, when they did,
To see beyond shapes on a wall

Though we didn’t convince our mothers
If they listened, when they did,
To dream their way through dark places that scared them

Though we didn’t open their eyes for them
Not knowing then
That only they could open their eyes
And still can when they choose

We know to ask our children when they call
What did you see? while we hold them close
Listening to the strange tales they tell
Without interruption,

And when they ask
Did you see it too?
We share our own tales while they hold their breath
Eyes wide gleaming roundly into darkness,

And when they ask
What did you do?
We tell them
Why I hitched a ride on the back of a shooting star
Behind Baba Yaga’s cauldron
Somersaulting through the skies until I fell
Into a bed of soft leaves showed me
How to find my way back home,

Then they snuggle and say
We’re glad you found your way home
Before they fall asleep
Until dawn.