I can remember lakes of kindness
and jumping into them,
and the light that powers smiles
soaking in, and filling up, flooding me
with an abiding wellbeing

Some I could return to often,
some were more like puddles
but were enough to light me up

There were dry patches, too.
I could go for long times in between ablutions,
sustaining as they were,
and because I still could access them in memory

But the richest thing is when
I can create a lake for others –
when I do that, I never lack.

©Wendy Mulhern
May 5, 2022