But even before we were lost
We had changed our destination
We had spoke of going to this place
To listen to the silence
To make love with nature
In nature with the noise of nothingness
To be there, with peace
With the richness of life's love all around us.
The festival is a few weeks away
Yet already the campers have begun to arrive
Their half-barrel barbecues happily burnFed with the twigs of beech and hazel
Undisturbed we climb the stile
With its water tap and electric light
We wander off, out among the grasses
You lead on
We pull our clothes away, gently and together
I take a photograph of my shadow
Of your stature, of the swaying grasses
In the space that is somehow between us
We wonder at the wondrous land & skyscapes
Lay lightly down; with our love beside us
Stillness brings the unspoken meditation
For which we thank, for which we bless
We rise, just as the moon rose above us
We each take each others picture
We each take the moons picture
Hold hands and slowly stroll
Find our way back, slowly onwards
On from this place
A place we might call heaven
The moon is full
After our walk through Tennyson county
We had talked of returning to the church
In the still of night
The old map-book shows
That Tetford and Somersby have survived
Both are feintly found
On the torn out plotted paperAnd by our slow drive
With the surest of directions
We arrive, park up under the light
Of the half lit telephone box
Across the road is Tennyson’s birthplace
Next door to the castellated manor house
Which itself is scenically misplaced
And fades into a decaying diversion
The churchyard gate is open
Old yews stand eerily still
We stand, chilled together
At the half-opened unbolted door
I feel afraid, I feel your fear
We enter as if into a presence
The door is left open
We hug; our fear is transferred
Passed through
One to the other
Onwards into that place
That no one ever knows
After a while we sit in the pews
I cannot settle
Anyway this is your place
The silent beauty suits you
It belongs to you
I stand aside
Reflect back
Smile upon your stillness
We walk at zero pace
Ambling
Without haste or urgency
Back to the parked car
The moon is full
The sky clear, well almost
Just a shade of sodium
Just a wisp of cloud
We drive off
Moths dance
In the headlights glare
We are heading home
Tonight we entered
Into the land of magic
Tonight we emerged
From the loss of love
This poem is from the pamphlet Rainbows On My Spectacles - Love Through a Lens
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