-- Ode to Hopes and Dreams --

by John Herlihy

Hopes and dreams as if chiseled from unyielding stone,

Varnished in the hot driving winds from burnished bone.

Recollections, memories, on the backs of autumn leaves,

Falling face down on the ground under wind-swept trees.

I walk my memories as thru a winter landscape of snow,

Winter trees in the ground of my soul blessing to bestow.

These dreams of mine no longer burdened with shadow,

They reverberate in my heart off the strings of life’s bow.

Even when everything seems lost, the future still remains,

The present moment now facing me a fine future contains.

Hope lies in winter trees or a smooth stone in one’s palm,

Our desire fits the imagination as it sings its sacred psalm.

Abandoning worldly desires like entering a stone or tree,

Almond blossoms falling in spring our human eyes to see.

Hopes, when they finally arrive, feel as a long-awaited gift,

A treasure-trove of sentiments our weary hearts to uplift.

The promise of my voice, to be as silent as a stone or tree,

Whisper of the beauty of nature’s silence on bended knee.

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Copyright © John Herlihy

Friday 14 February 2025