Pilgrim Gathering

Photo by Karen Lee

July 23, 2022

Fireflies spark in the marsh grasses.
Bullfrogs announce themselves.
My footsteps
Crunch in the gravel path
I enter into being

A moonless night
On Moonstone Beach
In midsummer.

Lying on our backs,
Sometimes in silence
Soaked in wonder

Listening to the long 
Slow thrum of Waves
Tumbling the Milky Quartz Pebbles
Smoothing them out
Making perfect little spheres
That glow in the sunlight
And remember the Moon Tides
That made them.

The beating Heart of the Ocean
Reminds me over and over
That there is a rhythm 
In everything, every Being, 
In Me,
In Us.

Looking at one Star
I wonder…
How long has her light been traveling?
Does this Star Being even still exist?

When I forget about these questions,
When I am being
My heart becomes luminous.

And I wonder again, 
Will the radiance
Of my love for this world
Travel on after I no longer exist?

My ancestors, the Star People know the answer, 
Though I do not.

And then we talk and wonder,
Why is it easier to see a star
When you look just to the side of it?
Though I know the answer,
I pretend just for a moment that I do not know
What my father, a sailor, taught me.
Then I tell.

But I wonder…
Which is better?
Knowing?
Or not not knowing?

Hours pass and it seems like no time at all.
Someone checks their watch.
And together we wonder,
Will we fall asleep on the beach
And unintentionally spend the night?

I think to myself, maybe that would be nice too.

Though we want to stay here forever,
Our soft beds call to us,
That and the thought of our Morning Coffee.
Another 30 minutes,
We agree.

Though it seems absurd
I tell Siri to set a timer.
I am after all the instigator
Of this love affair.
I want everyone to face the morning 
with no regrets.

It feels like hours have passed.
Did the alarm not work?
I ask Siri to tell me what time it is.
Twenty minutes have passed 
Since our last conversation.

I know for sure Stars are playing 
With the elasticity of Time tonight.

I see a Shooting Star 
and 
Strangely, 
It draws an arc.

Is this even real?
Am I hallucinating?
Impossible to know for sure.
I smile.

The thinnest of Clouds waft over
A veil of sheerest peach
Or lavender,
We can’t agree.
I can’t help but love Clouds too,
Just as much as I love Stars.

A friend and I go down to give our regards
To Surf kissing the Shore
Kissing our Feet.

The world is not perfect.
There is a lone house on the dunes
A rude light in the oversized window.
Arrogance.
I imagine a Big Storm coming.

A motion detector 
Flips on a spotlight
I swear elaborately.

But then, something about the blaze
Of harsh white light,
Catches the smooth crest of Waves
And Neon Green Streaks spark
Across the smooth curls of water
Just before they fall.
We scream and dance with delight.
Again and again.

The light goes out.
The Green Sparks cease.
We wonder, what was that?
We don’t know.

It is time to go.

My footsteps crunch in the gravel.
The bullfrogs announce themselves.
The lightening bugs spark in the marsh grasses.

The Sky on the northern horizon
Glows a deep dusky violet.
I’m in love, utterly smitten,
I can’t take another step.

Then I see
Pond reflects Sky, 
even here, even now in the dark.
It glows a dusky violet.
With steadfast devotion.

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I teach The Art of Pilgrimage: Nourishing Practices for Troubled Times. My aim is to help people reconnect to sacred relationship with the web of life, healing themselves, healing each other and healing the planet. We meet in person in the Rhode Island area, and also on the virtual space, once a month. You can find out more about the program here: http://breathingtimeyoga.com/all-workshops

I invite your thoughtful reflections in the comments section below.