An Afternoon.

Feet pounding sidewalks.

jazz music

swaying the trees

bending the hearts of the gods

until their feet are light

and they smile.

Dark clouds wafting over head,

“Be prepared.”

Voices drifting through tents

and trees

and hearts.

Shoulder, knee, forehead

– Connected.

Drums beating,

the rich vibrations of the earth,

goddesses freewheeling across

the stones.

Laughter, tears,

side by side,

in merriment, self-knowledge.

Food lifted to lips,

accepted by the body,

the lives sacrificed

thanked.

Strawberry vines, eggplant,

berries, bread,

“You belong here”.

Humming,

gentle, sunlight,

humming.

A dark empress,

a king of the dead,

a hooded man,

a red-haired woman.

The offerings

of time,

and heart,

and love.

A being

no longer frail,

but running and leaping,

and dancing

through a rich garden.