Sanctuary

sanctuary

a summer rain blows in

during the heat of day

and i seek shelter

beneath the canopy of a bald cypress

waiting for the rain to abate,

i examine the trunk

from where it rises

out of the ground

to where it terminates

against a sky of gray

as straight as an arrow,

dressed in shaggy brown bark,

its many thick limbs

branch off

into slender branchlets

with fine rows

of short needle like leaves

staring up into this green canopy,

having forgotten the rain,

i realize

i am completely lost…

in a sanctuary

on a different day

 

i find a snail shell

and study the spiral design…

i am lost in thought

with how the shell is formed…

from the onset, as a soft tiny mass

increasing in size as the snail consumes calcium and grows,

the shell growing as well,

in bursts,

like the rings of a tree…

i marvel at the spiral shape…

a constantly recurring symbol

in the natural world

that speaks of beginnings

and continuations

not ends

i find that i am lost again…

that nature is my sanctuary…

on a different day 

 

a fallen feather catches my eye…

and i am instantly fascinated

with the intricate network

of barbs and barbules,

knitted together

to serve a specific purpose…

i imagine the tiny bird

whose feather i hold in my hand,

and the dynamics of flight

as the bird takes wing…

this single feather playing

only a small part

in the sum of the whole

and once again,

i am found…

because i am lost…

in the awe of nature

by Sylvia L. Mattingly

July 18, 2020