kaleidoscope

i sat motionless in my seat,
surrounded by other beings
composed of their own stories,
fears and hues. if you were
a color, what would you be,
you? i listened to the man
before me speak, but the
very act of my existence was
splintered by the color behind,
the light billowing in, pouring
over my soul; singing to me.
was i alone in my being moved,
did others feel it too?
too silenced behind their
masks, as i was too. i likely
saw every color in the spectrum–
a dancing fiery flower at the bottom,
overseen by a geometric soul,
mirroring that of my own. i
perceived characters i knew not,
yet, they, too set my spirit
in motion. i looked beyond, into
eternity; the images created a
large picture, comprising the whole.
each fragmented, once broken,
now creating the whole.
i was reminded of my own
existence, sitting motionless,
in awe, jagged and splintered
upon the floor.
the curly-headed woman
in front of me,
what did she know?
i surveyed more boxes
of nuances scattered about
the room, a reflection
of the stories we all hold
dear, or perhaps, those we
wish to forget.
i glanced again toward the
spectrum before me, there
i saw the redbud tree,
the warm orange of an
Icelandic poppy, verdant green that
appeases the spirit, finally,
blue, arching it all,
engulfed in that peaceful hue.
to the east, a wall
fluted in wood from beginning
to end, from where one
wondered which part of Earth
it hailed, and as i regained
consciousness, i became aware
of the architectural feat’s
disorienting nature, as i sat
motionless, contemplating my own.
looking out we all floated
in a sea of blue,
unfazed by its turbulence;
but, today it was rather
calm, though what did you
feel, you? i think of the
currents and their transience,
likened to the wind, carrying beauty
and debris quite far, and
the histories both old and new.
the trust we have, that
the seat in which we sit
will keep us afloat
amidst the sea upon which
we sail. i set my gaze
again upon the horizon of the
inestimable fragmentation of
color that shone before me,
reminiscent of a Diaspora
of people in the sublunary world.
and, i also pondered how i
arrived in this place, scattered
throughout this great expanse
in a sea of blue. i sat motionless,
and remembered, i am here too.

-cl
3.7.23