Ad Infinitum Book One Master of the Nine Steps

by John Northern

PART TWO

  The snow

  Patched

  The path turning brown

  Trees

  Smelling of pine

  Small plants growing

  And soon the brooks

  The streams running

  And ponds blue—

  The skies of the earth

  Progressing forward

  Slowly

  But passing quickly

  Hand in hand

  Moving Into the forest

  Giant trees

  And little ones

  Plants of all kind

  Searching for the sun

  Peeping through

  For the life giving rays

  And little animals

  Affectionate for the lady

  (Even as I)

  Peering from homes

  And closer

  Even the big animals

  Tromping through the woods

  Came to look

  Indeed

  The woods were alive

  Surrounding the trailing path

  A greener forest

  And thinning snow

  She grasped

  My hand

  Tighter

  And as we continued

  She spoke again

  Of her coming journey

  "*Soon

  I must leave

  For the coastal cities*"

  She said

  "*But when

  My mission is finished

  We will settle down

  And have

  The rest of our lives

  Together*"

  Her voice

  Carried

  On the whispering winds

  Through the pines

  As she spoke further

  I noticed

  High in the sky

  Above

  A black dot

  Growing larger

  As it circled

  Lower

  And lower

  Slow

  And slower

  "*I shall

  Follow the plan*"

  She said

  "*For there

  I may help a few,

  Perhaps

  Produce a spark

  To kindle a light

  For those

  In the coastal cities*"

  The dot grew larger

  And larger

  Til finally

  I saw him

  The huge black bird

  Circling

  long

  and

  slow

  He stooped to a dive

  And looping

  Swooped low

  Then up again he flew

  This bird seemed familiar—

  Had I seen him before?

  "*But the days

  Before I leave

  I would

  Stay

  With you

  "*Together again

  In the woods—

  To learn and love

  To live together

  To know the happy ways

  Of happy days

  "*And this is why

  Now

  We travel a new path

  "*On our way

  To my father's summer cabin*"

  The bird

  Flew higher

  In the sky

  Became again

  A black dot

  Then disappeared

  "I watch in wonder -

  And I know

  That here

  In the woods

  I am out on a limb

  In these

  Green mansions

  I feel as of

  A stranger in a strange land

  And I understand not

  The circling of that bird

  Black -

  In the sky -

  The raven

  "But still

  The woods are crisp

  And fresh

  They are kind to me

  And I enjoy

  Your mountains"

  I looked about,—

  The sky

  (What could be seen)

  Was blue—

  Little white clouds

  Sent fluffy messages,

  The trees whistling pines

  And small meadows were green

  With crossing streams

  With crossing butterflies

  Walking on

  We talked

  With joy

  Happiness love,

  Now hand in hand

  Then arm and arm

  Around

  And the beauty of all

  The day passed quickly

  And walking

  Talking

  She led me upon the path

  Beautiful

  We should spend some time

  Together

  We would live for a time

  In the cabin

  For a while

  Short long

  Micro macro

  A day or two

  A year of two

  Infinity

  Never-ending

  And greatly

  To be together

  Soon came the night

  Dark and light

  The moon and stars

  And slumbered away

  And came the sun

  And we traveled on

  Time passed upon the path

  And soon

  So soon

  Around a bend

  Ribboning

  And over a hill

  Small

  And down

  Down

  In a dell

  A small meadow—

  There was the cabin

  Brown logs

  Long

  logs

  Meeting to unify

  For the sake of shelter

  And

  A steep roof

  To enlighten

  The weighty snow

  (But not that day)

  Down the path

  Approaching

  Easily opened the door

  How grand

  Simply

  For a log cabin

  Exploring

  Finding

  Few rooms

  Many books

  Many papers

  Poems

  Stories

  Essays

  Even blank pages

  Simple

  But many windows to see from

  A cabin for her father

  Meditating

  Exploring the depths of the mind

  Exploring people

  Exploring life

  "In this room,

  In this cabin

  I can see your father—

  A great man"

  "*Yes*"

  She answered

  Across her eyes

  A momentary flicker of longing

  Then the happy love

  Again

  The smile

  The wisdom of life

  In the cabin

  Lying

  Peacefully we went to sleep

  Lying side by side

  On the cultured rug

  And the crackling

  And popping

  The fireplace

  Devouring the wood

  Smoldering carbon

  And belching gases

  Up the chimney

  "Ah

  The happy love of life

  (But oh the sorrow

  That man must fight wars -

  Be miserable—suffering and death

  To understand the worth

  Of happy love)

  We talked away

  The day

  Reading

  Exploring

  Running the meadow

  And fell the night

  But

  Here we are

  Now

  Think not of man's sorrow

  With beauty about

  And the lady

  Beside,

  Experience and
be

  Yes,

  The lady

  And happy love

  Ah yes,

  The rivers

  Trailing my pen

  Telling a story of life

  Showing the way

  For those who will,

  Showing the beauty of life—

  The beauty

  All around

  Running free

  The rivers of life

  Curved

  In lines of wisdom

  Flowing

  flowing ever outward

  To the stars,

  Bringing me to the knowledge

  Of other planets

  Traveling the speed

  Of infinite rush

  Life ever abundant

  But different

  Dreaming—

  The mind awake

  And the brain at rest

  Observing

  From light years away

  The planet so blue

  Spiraling close

  And closer

  The people so hurried

  And worried

  Material concern

  While viewing through the lookingglass self

  They bring me down

  And compare

  Of the coastal cities—

  Complex societies

  Complex technology

  Orchestrated by primitive people

  Anxieties and hatred

  Outweighing happiness

  And seldom seen

  The essence of infinite law

  War all around

  Technological machines of destruction

  By destruction and for destruction

  The human ego rises

  To bring down the material—(A paradox

  Certainly

  As the ego destroys that

  Which the ego desires)

  But there are those

  Who fight the wars

  With love

  Seems futile,

  But they ever persist—

  Bring out the pen

  And write the futility

  Of war

  Look—

  A poem in the deluge

  Of Earthly works: