In the Deeper Places

In the Deeper Places

I’ll meet you in your dreams,
at the mossy spot in the forest by the spring. 
We’ll do it again, together,
that journey to the deeper places you so love.
But in the waking hours, engage,
mingle with your fellow man.  Interact,
even when your own nervous chatter interferes
with your mission to be discreet. 
And yes, even when the awkwardness
of aimless hands and forgotten names
accentuates your shame as you meander
amid the delicate flowers flitting around you.

Are you afraid you will forget how to find the deeper places
if you allow yourself a swim in the shallow waters
of polite conversation? Even whales and dolphins
find their way back to the deep after frolicking on the surface.
So can you.  Go ahead. Resurface.  Float upon the waves
of changing trends and social niceties.  Even
through the mindless dribble, you can find
a way into their hearts, or they can find yours.

But don’t let them dampen your spirit or trample your soul. 
They will try, those anvils with lassos, afraid to sink alone. 
And the bulls with gracious smiles and precise manners
hide thorns beneath petals unweathered by storm.
But you, my gentle innocent, hold the power
of intuition and unconditional love buried deep within you,
and all they’ll ever see is your childish eagerness,
much too kinetic to be trusted with their fine china. 

Call me, to your dreams, if you need respite,
and you’ll find me waiting there.  I will trust you
with knowledge more precious than their finest teacups,
but only if you agree to return to the world.  You must
be brave, as you walk among the missing and the mean,
to speak of the deeper places, to be a carrier of blank slates
upon which the seekers may write their own destinies. 

When you find them willing, cultivate them gently.
And when they are ready, send them to me. Tell them
I’ll be waiting  at the mossy spot by the spring,
in the forest like the one where you once met me. 
Will you trust me, now, to carry on the work you've begun?
I will safely guide them on an unforgettable journey
where they will find wisdom, peace and guidance,
and even more treasures besides. 

And when they return, they will remember
what knowledge is available to us all if only
we will seek what awaits us
in the deeper places.