One day while feeding birds at the Raptor Center I was pondering why I was here and Marianne was not, and about the sorrow in the world. I thought of how small deeds can really help, how we are connected and are not alone. I sensed there was a poem to be written. After my shift I went for a walk in the adjoining Latta Nature Preserve, and this poem came.
We Are Not Alone It was the trees that captured my attention Our planet’s oldest living things An intelligence not of the mind The tall pine trees sway in the gentle wind Which refreshes my body And cools my fevered head As my mind ponders the koan of my life. Why am I here when my loved one is gone? Why must my mind find the answer? Why cannot I be like the patient trees? And why is there such sorrow in the world? The world is out of balance We have made it so Time grows short We must change, but how? We are not alone There is a wisdom of a higher kind We are not in this by ourselves. And what is my role? Sometimes I have glimpsed the simplicity of happiness Can I share it? Can I lighten the hearts of others? And let them know That every deed of kindness is special Every act of love is a blessing And that in truth We are not alone.