To Jean: I was brought to a stream which cascaded down

from high ground through a gorge. The banks were shrouded

in tall lissom trees and the sun was shining. In the gloom

I looked up to the topmost leaves of a tree. In that instant

my outlook on life, which had been very depressed, changed

and has never since gone retrograde. Is it poetry or what?

The Dancing Girl May 1993

I walked along a lonely path

          On a peaceful, warm September day.

Above me, in a clear blue sky,

          Not a single cloud for company.

The solitude wrapped me in peace

          As I passed under Acer trees

And then I lifted up my eyes

          Til I could see the topmost leaves

               Translucent leaves of palest green

                         Fluttered in the flowing air

       And near the top a pale green hue

                         Shone from the waving leaves up there.

               I turned my gaze back to the path

                         And realized I had company

               A golden girl with amber hair

                         Was holding out her hand to me.

I took her hand and she took mine

          I smelt September in her hair

I heard the river in her laugh

          But not one word did we speak there

The waterfall cascaded down

          Where it has run ten thousand years

The golden girl danced in my space

          And cleared the space of all my fears

               And when the space was freed from fear

                         Her lovely arms encircled me

               She squeezed the hurt from my sad heart

                         And chased the cold and care away

             And as she moved around my space

                         She introduced me to the dance

               I quickly learned the steps and pace

              Of the reel they call "The Second Chance"

She sat me down beside the stream

          And showed me how to sing my song

And showed me how to write my words

          And where my music had gone wrong

She sang her song first with her eyes

          Then in a voice that was crystal clear

And then we sang in harmony

          And all at once I lost my fear.

               I found my voice and sang to her

                         My dancing girl with amber hair

               I'll sing to her forever now

               By that bubbling stream in a glen in Clare

               The dancing girl brought me to life

                         Gave me the strength to jump and run

               And on a wooden bridge that day

                         She handed me September sun.

C'est la vie, Cherie!