Mountain Lake
By John Herlihy

Snow-capped mountains fell to the floor,
Reflecting blurred images so much more.
The mountain lake absorbed the sight;
Random birds passed by in their flight.
The lake lay there oh so soft and sultry;
Nature’s maidens beckon from a belfry.
A soothing silence added its own note,
With waves of quiet peace as if it spoke.
The only thing missing an offered hand,
To touch my mind with its magic wand.

But touched it was, my mind now aflutter.
If I had to speak, I would surely stutter.
Calm, inviting as the arms of my mother,
Asking me to enter as a trusting brother.
Mercy lay within its enveloping waters,
Pure snow peaks sourced its headwaters.
Determined at first to sit as water’s edge,
Not a sound swimmer my luck to hedge.
Mythical animals sent wavelets to shore,
The lake suddenly seemed an open door.

I stood before Nature’s finery in utter awe,
Bestirred, bedazzled by what I now saw.
Primitive urges awoke from my head to toes,
As in first ages when nature wore no clothes.
Triumphant, I stripped down to naked skin;
No one there to take notice, no next of kin.
The moody waters lay so inviting and snug;
The lake mirrored the mountains like a drug.
A glorious revelation found words to speak,
I rose to my feet with my knees feeling weak.

I stood at water’s edge thinking this is crazy;
The wind is so chill and the air a little hazy.
A poor swimmer, deep water makes me fret;
But missed opportunity also makes me upset.
With a savage cry, I started to run and leap,
Into the dark, brooding waters of the deep.
I leapt into the unknown not stopping myself,
Off the clear horizon of earth’s precious shelf.
I now swam thru mountains peaks and sky,
Sparkling luminous in the sea of God’s eye.