To the Muse by Mark Barrett

To the Muse

by Mark Barrett

I turn quickly and squint into the darkness but

you have disappeared within the shadows.

Inside pale shvers of moonlight

I see brief, quivering movements among the trees and look,

just in time to see nothing dart behind a thick-skinned oak.

All is calm again insidemy head as I sit,

watching and waiting. .There!

Just beyond the tree break,

I could swear I saw the ambient waves of grain moving

to the rhythm of a body breaking through the rye.

Was it you?

You need not flee,

for even now I hold you inmy heart

as easily as I hold my head in my hands

and I taste you (bittersweet)

as readily as the tears that run down my face.

The night and day both disappear when you direct your gaze upon me.

Your eyes eclipse the sun and the moon.

Blinded by your beauty and grace,

I stumble along in the darkness

searching for the path

that will lead me back to you.

Indeed,

I live in perpetual night

until you return to be my sun,

for only you could cut through the shadows

that surround my heart.

Why does the centrifugal force of your heart

draw mine into its orbit?

Only you know why

I chase shadows and demons

and see reflections of your face in the moonlight.

Only you know why

I dedicate this to you.

To the muse:

You chose me, I did not choose you.