Waiting

February 25 2018

You can sense it

A constant presence

An arms length behind you

Just off the left shoulder

Pay attention

What might you feel

A frisson

A vacancy

An absence

A chill

Or perhaps nothing

 

But look

Turn your head quickly

You see nothing

Is it a hooded figure

Perhaps a radiant youth

Perhaps a fearsome hag

Or a diaphanous mist

Or a shadow

It will remain unseeable

Until the moment

 

Steadfast with you

A lifetime’s invisible companion

At some moment

After long preparation

After achievement and triumph

Or fear or suffering

Or without warning

Suddenly

The hand on your shoulder

 

Gone in an instant

The electro-chemical network

Called you

The pattern dissipates

What was before?

And what remains?