In the early perfection of the morning,
deep breathing while still half bound in sleep,
I felt the wakening hand
of what moves everything,
the easy all encompassing of harmony,
the power of waterfalls
and teeming life

And I felt that, if I had to face
the dragon’s breath again,
I would know what to say,
or not say, I would have the softening
that we brought back from the ocean  –
soothing of clouds and waves,
comfort of heads resting on shoulders  –
enough to dissipate what had threatened
to swallow us before.

©Wendy Mulhern
June 29, 2021