the many-layered embrace

On the way to work this morning,
my bike seemed to drift along,
as if it were choosing
the speed and direction,
letting me, like a passenger,
look around and
see the world
in a different way.

There was a crescent moon,
above the quiet streets,
and as I arrived here,
the east glowed ochre
behind the pines.

The inner voice
of the morning.

It brought back the memory
of a recent thought, just a phrase
from a sleepless night:

the many-layered embrace

I think of it as being
enfolded in a lotus, within
layers of petals and sepals.

It is the embrace of life,
of these bodies and our health,
of home and country,
and this beautiful crazy planet.

The embrace
of abundance,
of food and comfort.
of love, our families, our friends.

And we respond,
returning the embrace,
with art, with words, with work,
with concern and care.

With listening to the inner voice
of a place,
of a person,
a moment.
By seeking to attain the source,
connect with the basis.

It is a many layered embrace,
only there is no way
to say it,

And no way
to stop trying
to say it.