Ancient Parchment

(Published in Academy of the Heart and Mind, July, 2024)

Planning and scheming.

Writing and dreaming.



You write ideas in a book that gets sprayed with sea water

and crinkles like ancient parchment.


This document is only good to preserve on a shelf

or perhaps not at all,

use it as kindling.



Awake,

untethered from notes,

calendar,

and busy items.

You remove the salty, foggy, glasses.

Before you is revealed a bed of oysters,

each one containing

a perfectly plump, pearl.



Pluck the pearls

and arrange the three dew drops on a cord tied tight in a lover’s knot. 



When you pinch each one between your fingers

you know this life is real,

solid,

and sometimes sublime.



Straighten your glasses

and see reality before you.