Life’s Journey is a River

I am a gentle river,
I am still, I am calm,
I trickle and I shine,
I sparkle and I smile.
I feed the floral fields,
I bless the golden harvests.

I am the music in the stream.
I am its echo
Sending everlasting harmonies
To the windswept breezes
That caress the scented pines
Along the endless shore.

I am the turbines of change,
I am the grist of grain,
I fill the fishermen’s nets
I mingle ‘midst the rocks
That nestle in the soft, wet sand.

I follow the wind that blows,
I am the air that flows
Through flapping, canvas sheets.
I am the current set adrift
Ambling across the land,
Furrowing in the crevices,
Cascading over cliffs.

I am the river of chances,
I am the river of changes.
I am the endless mover
The never-ending provocateur.

I am the journey begun
With the paddles lapping,
The sails clapping,
The engines chugging,
I am angry, I am thunder,
I am lightning,
I tumble and I fall,
Gnashing and gashing
Against the tranquil shore.
I am out of control
I am rushing, | am crushing,
Roaring at my world.

But then
I am alone.
I am the river of truth
I am the virtuous gift
I am blessed with hope
I am filled with life.
I am love, I am happiness
I have no regrets.
I am massive, I am small
I am a drip, I am a drizzle
I am the thunder, I am the storm
Berating the friendly shore.

I am the waves and their retum
I am one with the sandy dunes
I have reached my goal,
I ove my soul.

I believe…
I am honest, I am true
I live in silence
To find peaceful repose
I am faithful to a dream
I cling to hope.

I am charity, I want to share
I give what I can take,
I take what I can give
I want to live
I am the river of virtue,
I am the river of change
I am its flow,
I am its current
Meandering at will
But always constant
Even when I am alone.

I am the universal friend
Living with the ebb and flow.
Wishing to wash away the pain
That lingers still in a deserted brain.

I am the Oasis, I am the life
Refreshing your thirsty soul,
For I am your journey
To a distant shore
Where you are not alone.

Michael J. Walsh

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