POETRY
off the engine of a passing boat moments after the mutual flashing on & off again of respective spotlights affixed to their separate bows A lone dog upon the bank barks at the floating intrusion into its bridge checkpoint while two motionless young boys sit atop the bridge monitoring the exchange
Dozens of islands continue to open and close folding up into one another displaying the oneness of their canopy then repeatedly unfolding in star pockets and intersections of the individual silhouettes
At the midpoint of the path is a gazebo overlooking a bean shaped pond with lily pads covering all but the far side which is crowded with cattails sheltering a chorus of amphibian harmonies A late meal is procured from a smiling one-eyed man & the sound of jungle drifts then floats into the state of dreams
Along the starboard bank a man walks lifting his hand to wave while never giving glance toward the soft rumble of just a few of the forty horses swimming down river
The boat slows to its destination a brown dock resting under a corrugated tin roof sheltering an elderly couple patiently waiting to welcome their guests A raised wooden pathway leads up to the deck patio of an orange cottage resting on stilts to protect it from the swellings of the river
Š Mark Ulyseas
John Chester Lewis was born in Southern California and began writing poetry during university in Colorado. Presently he lives in Ubud, Bali, Indonesia where he works on his poetry, music, and painting, when not running JL Galleries fine art. Three more books of poetry are due to be released in 2010. http://www.poempress.com http://www.jlgalleries.com http://www.johnniechester.com Š www.liveencounters.net