I wrote this post in response to this post, about Orion, which is and has always been, my favorite constellation.
And I spoke in my last post about Bear choosing his own name, when I had originally chosen to call him Orion, but he had other ideas.
As I didn't have any photos handy of Orion, I figured this photo of Bear as a kitten, with his WUSTL bear, would be an excellent substitute. ;-)
This is one of my favorite poems that I have ever written, written in February 1999, originally about the pre-dawn walks my former husband I used to take when he was trying to regain his health after giving up his 3-pack-a-day cigarette habit. We did a lot of brainstorming on those walks, saw some beautiful and amazing wildlife, and both loved the time spent.
The Dark Before the Dawn
Upon a morning clear and dark
The dark before the dawn
I walk the quiet neighborhood
Orion's almost gone
The stars are friends I've come to know
And view when I am able
For in this world of chaos
They appear uniquely stable
Appearances deceive I know
And stars are no exception
Yet I never fail to notice
How they open my perception
When young I moved across this land
A continent afar
And though the land was new and strange
I saw familiar stars
It brought me such a comfort
One I never could explain
For my sky had traveled with me
In my luggage on the plane
And when my world was broken
And I had nowhere to turn
In the night I had Orion
I would sit and watch him burn
And one day when I traveled
To a land across the sea
New stars were mingled with the old
And brought some peace to me
For though this place was stranger still
The language, too, unknown
Still a piece of sky came with me
And it brought a sense of home
I am thankful I'm a sailor
For in sailing through the years
The stars upon the water
Bring a thinking soul to tears
For sailing is when time permits
The way to see the stars
The fullness of the sky
The Milky Way and angry Mars
While sailing in a steady breeze
Upon a gentle sea
The glory of the universe
Envelops tiny me
As we smoothly slice the water
Phosphorescent sparks aglow
Adding greatly to the magic
Stars above and stars below
When I think of the explorers
And of sailors long gone by
What a leap of faith it must have been
To leave familiar sky
So I thank those great explorers
And I cherish every one
For without their faith I never
Could have done what I have done
Orion is in view again
His scabbard and his sword
And turning not away from strife
But always, ever, toward
And so it is this winter's sky
I'll miss until next year
For that bravest of a winter brave
Upon a morning clear
I walk homeward through the dawning
With the stars now all but gone
Thanking God for fading starlight
As I wait tomorrow's dawn.
1Feb99, rev 13Aug2005, rev. 03Jun2006
This poem was edited from the original following my separation and later divorce from my then-husband.
This changes not at all my gratitude that we began these walks together, that we had some of our best ever talks on those walks, and that those are the memories I cherish most, that showed him for the truly good man that he was, even when he sometimes forgot that. Life is wonderful.
And I would love to hear your take in the comments.
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All words and images are my own.
The photo of Bear as a kitten was taken with one of my Canon PowerShot digital cameras, though at this late date, I wouldn't hazard a guess as to the model number, because I frankly have no clue. But they have ALL been great cameras.
The photo of our dog, Lolo, and our late cat, Miod, I took as they were cooperatively begging at the dinner table, despite our longstanding rule of not feeding them from the table.
You can see how much that deterred them both.
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