-- Moonlit –-

John Herlihy

My faithful dog whimpered as though thrilled,

A dazzling display of stars thru the night spilled.

We floated through the ink of blue-black waters,

With no wind, trees stood silent as ghostly squatters.

Above the tree tops, the bats of night did fly and flit,

An eerie quiet had entered this dark world, moonlit.

The world of backwater looks different from inside,

All of nature simply gazed at me, I now wanted to hide.

The trees, the night sky, looked on me as an alien race,

Alien, as if I didn’t belong, a stranger in this sacred place.

In truth, I could hardly recognize the beauty of the scene,

First time in a boat on night waters, what did it all mean?

The ancient silence of the deep awakened by night calls,

My dog and I listened, to see night beauty that enthralls.

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(c) John Herlihy 4 January 2019