Today I am alone and far from home.
Long gone are the places I knew.
I felt safe when I was with my family.
Their generous hugs taught me love.

Finally, I have left my soul’s inner desert.
I found the way to a new safety.
I walk steadily, following the new plan.

I paused to visit a solitary tree.
I felt a powerful life force among the branches
and its deep shadow hosted a cool breeze.

As I circled the trunk, I saw a flower.
Its stems climbed the tree proudly.
I admired its tenacious hold on life.
Protected from the wind, it had found a home.

William Wayne Smith