Sometimes the moon tides come for me,
pulling me to other times and places
Children laughing in the sunshine
while building their magical sand castles,
their hopes and dreams all ahead of them
and all seems so possible and natural to them
Then I turn around and feel love's first kiss
and the wondrous ecstasy of passion's embrace,
as my hopes and dreams come vibrantly alive
about a love which should last forever
Then I turn once again and feel the agony
of life's disappointments closing in on me,
as my hopes and dreams quickly vanish
into the shadows of what might have been
I allow the darkness of fear and vulnerability
to quietly, but inexorably, blind and cover me,
as if by shunning the light, it cannot harm you
and anyway, isn't it just so cozy here in the dark
Then quite unexpectedly and annoyingly too,
another tidal force begins to whisper unto me
At first it's just a faint and slightly irritating sensation
presumptuously interrupting my placid slumber
And I wonder why this intrusion has crept into my night
just when I had begun to be comfortable with the fates
But it shows me no mercy in its compelling onslaught,
and the force of its callings beckons me once again
And without knowing exactly how or why or when,
I'm absolutely certain that I've played this scene before
Time is an unremitting river and it will not stand still,
no matter how much anyone might pray for it to do so
It carries in its wake that which we must know
and its messengers will find us wherever we are
There will be no escaping its merciless talons now,
any more than there ever has been or ever will be
And, of course, while the pain of its relentless clutches
seems so cruel, uncaring, and unjust at these times,
the fortunate understand that everything has a reason
and that we ourselves had a hand in its design
And so, I begin the ritual of preparing myself
for that which I know must begin once again
I have lessons to learn and pathways to follow,
and trying to hide from them is but a temporary illusion
And I might weep sometimes because of these awakenings
and wonder why must I keep trying to learn from them
But then, we have guardians who do know the how and why
and I find comfort in their presence, however subtle they may be
For when the star tides come a'callin',
you will listen
and you will learn,
somewhere in time

dennis j hopkins
08/1998 (Rev 2002)
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