You
who laid an aching arm
across my shoulders
encouraging.
Encouraging?
Your face
peering into mine.
Asking.
Was it you?
A park
in December.
Oak trees and chimney smoke.
Did you ever know
anyone so lost
as I was then?
Lost in plain sight.
When you’re lost
you’re a different person.
You’re a lost person
who’s awake and searching.
You notice things and
you talk to people
you’d normally ignore.
There are oracles everywhere
all along the street,
on the other side
of the counter.
Taking your money.
Handing you the change.
Telling you the truth
of the universe.
How to get home.
Whether the oracle sends silence,
curses or directions,
she tells you the way home.
Make a gift
of what the oracle tells you.
It’s all in the listening.
There are oracles everywhere.
Still, I don’t know where I’m going.
And I’m no longer lost.
It’s different now.
I’ve stopped pretending I know the way.
That there is a way.
There’s just the way I’m going.
And that could change any time.
Any time at all.
One oracle said,
If you get lost, just keep turning right.
When you get used to that,
try a left and see what happens.