along another path I drop bits
of myself as if to find myself
again if I can realize I’m lost
again that of course is the rub
to know one’s gone astray before
too much has fallen away before
tired and thirsty you bend down
to a stream to drink and fail
to know the person looking
up at you as someone you would
want to know even if you could
conjure the courage to speak
after all the hints and whispers
failed to find her still at home
(November 6, 2016)
