If we all just sat down. In silence. Under a tree perhaps. Somehow our minds would unwind and these tangled threads of thought would become wisps of air no more solid than a cloud. Clouds have something to teach us about beauty, about lightness of being , about impermanence. We are all coming to terms with being alive. We are all fire-eaters and trapeze artists hoping there’s a safety net to catch our fall, waiting for the sunset as the clouds change from white to red To grey to black and that’s okay we might be afraid of the night but we all know you need the darkness to see the stars.

Let's sit a while beside this wall, And watch the foxgloves dance. Time to slow the pace, feel the sun on our face, And leave everything to chance.

You run to meet me in the shadows You come to find me in the dark You place your hand upon my shoulder You've set your seal upon my heart

That life is nothing but an endless stream
Of strange illusions, a waking dream
And hope is nothing without its fears
You could fill up an ocean with all these tears

Are we the rain, the river, the cloud and the sea
If we are like water then which drop is me
And what is time - the fast blink of an eye
A circle so vast that we think it’s a line.

...Your shadow flits from rock to rock.
Like a moth entwined by night.
And somewhere I hear you whispering,
"I'm heading for the light."

No footprints now along the shore.
No voices ringing clear.
No perfume drifting on the breeze,
But I know that you're still here.

Dedicated to the memory of Diane
a dearly beloved and inspirational wife and mother.