Through a Lens

Through a Lens

Walking where so many
others walk each day,
my steps take me
along familiar and
well-worn paths
within that space
between the real
and the reflection



I struggle to see
through the shadows
and to find
and to understand
the reality
before me.



And wherever
those steps lead,
I look for that place,
as the scene
unfolds before me,
where I  become one
with what I see
if only for the brief time
it takes to capture it
on the canvas of
my heart;
in an instant,
in the blink of an eye,
a momentary glance
forever captured
through a lens
struggling to
understand
and bring
some order
to the chaos
that I often see.



And what I am
privileged to see
through that lens,
whatever and
wherever it may be,
makes a difference
in my life and
becomes part of
my journey toward
an understanding of
what is before me
and what I have
left behind
in the shadows.

(c) bak 9-11-10

In Search of Solitude

In Search of Solitude

On those many days
when reality's din
has encroached
quite enough
on my peaceful space,
and finding the need
to reclaim
at least
a bit of it,
I go searching
once more,
and find peace
in the solitude
of the afternoon,
in the small ripples
the geese make
as they carve a pattern
across a pond of glass;



in the petals of waterlilies
as one by one
they open my heart
to the warmth
of a summer's afternoon;



in the sound of waterfalls
quieting my restlessness;



and I find it in a cloudless sky
of crystal blue.



And as the afternoon
begins to fade into twilight
I venture back to reality's door
until solitude beckons once more
and I can't help but follow her.

(c) bak 8-14-10

Under an August Afternoon Sun

Under an August Afternoon Sun

On a warm afternoon
and expecting to see
nothing new under
a hot August sun
I was pleasantly
mistaken.

For I saw the peacocks
who were hiding
the last time I was there
waking up from a siesta
in the shade.


I saw butterflies dancing
among the summertime
flowers as I followed them.


I saw the teenage ducklings
still having fun in the water.

The squirrel was wide awake.


I saw the young peacocks again.


And the hummingbird still
smiles down at me when
he lands on a branch.
I'm sure he still giggles
as I pass by.


c. bak 8-8-10

Perfection Revealed

Perfection Revealed

Lest we be
overwhelmed
by too much
of a good thing
all at once,
perfection
occasionally
reveals itself
little



by little



by little



until we
are finally able
to see



the whole
thing.



c. bak 8-6-10