Illuminating

The way the morning sun comes over the house
Illuminating, actually floodlighting, the tallest lean tree
Guarding the edge of the yard tucked close to the fence
The growing glow marks the morning’s progress
I’m not sure how to capture the spectacular slash of light
Brilliant heat cutting a diagonal across the solid trunk
Late spring mornings I watch this light show play out
The captivating spotlight shifts and dazzles
Lighting up branch after green leaf branch
A focused deliberate crawl of yellow light
Stooping lower, passing across rough bark
Nature’s clock, finally touching grass

In Dreams

In sleep and that dreamy state
Sleepiness before sleep sets in
A mysterious rope ladder hanging
Barely within reach swaying slightly
White rungs and gray rope falling
From darkness a black cloud obscuring
All but the lowest bars nothing but
White emptiness surrounding the
Swinging in half sleep I imagine
Lithely leaping to grab the lowest
Rung strongly steadily climbing hand
Over hand (I’m a younger woman climbing
But it’s my dream) towards the unknown
My fear of heights forgotten and absent
The natural swinging away from each step
Challenge that a rope ladder tends to pose
Neither obstacle materializes when the
Reaching and climbing begins
Though I feel strong and capable
I never progress beyond a few steps
More often though in my sleepy daze
It’s just the mystery ladder hanging
Perplexing
Disconcerting
An unknown purpose