The Hidden Places

Seeing the Unseen

Summer, what life you hide
where I can’t see,
Nurturing and building
under the canopy.

First a hodgepodge of items
stacked, then spread,
Molded, then folded
into a hidden homestead.

Feeding times scheduled,
Keeping close to hover
so none are missing,
Parents working hard, undercover.

Nighttime prayers and tucking in,
Took place where young lie,
Behind scenes, yet,
Out under a starry sky.

Protecting and watching
for enemies, while giving lessons
before takeoff,
Clandestine sessions.

Autumn, you blow blasts,
And cause the fells
of the colorful foliage,
Exposing the abandoned shells.

Oh, Winter, how your winds rock
empty cradles. I see them now,
Dotting the swaying tree limbs, high and low,
To the craftiness of Nature’s secrets, I bow.

Spring, you will beckon life return,
To remodel and claim back the lair,
Or start fresh places for new migrants,
In busy seclusion; again, I’m not aware.

What of me? I see the seasons
I’ve weathered.  Busy building shelter,
Shaken by gusts that expose emptiness,
Feeling the cold tossing me helter skelter.

Then awakened by new starts,
Finding the place I had lived in
now replicated by love’s offspring,
I'm fully alive and aware to this kin!