-- THE SIMPLICITY OF MY WORLD --

John Herlihy

It takes a bit of doing to create simplicity in a world;

White swan reflected in moonlight in its midnight world

Only a raised consciousness knows the beauty of less;

Those sated with desire will miss the touch of a caress.

I take care to fill the void of my world with sheer simplicity,

With my surroundings uncluttered, elegant in their sparsity.

The simplicity of my world has no room for noise or waste,

No room for falsity, pretention, lack of patience, or haste.

A painter paints ocean waves on canvas for the viewer to see;

The simple truth of the image brings to the viewer a vast sea.

The simplicity of a garden lies not in what the flowers show;

The simple truth of a garden preserves truths we do not know.

The simplicity of Mother Nature belies her extravagant touch;

Her magic wand strikes leaf and flower with beauty so much.

Everyone knows beauty of silence lies in the absence of sound;

But no one knows how to achieve it with so much noise around.

Imagine how sparks of fire and the dust of starlight attend thee

What beauty the light of the firefly and the glowworm lend thee

Indeed, they make no false promises they cannot rightly keep;

We follow the flight of the butterfly in pursuit of what it may seek.

The livid light of the setting sun sets the smooth rocks aglow;

The rain-filled pillow clouds above cast moving shadows below.

The simplicity of life lies all around us and not simply within;

The empty cup of a child’s destiny will soon be filled to the brim.

The longer I live, the more I appreciate forces of nature elemental,

Bitter lemons, sweet honey, the scent of the rose all sacramental.

The simplicity of nature unveils elevated worlds of truth and beauty;

That is why I incorporate simplicity into my world as a sacred duty.

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(c) John Herlihy 5 March 2019