Not here, but there

Frozen in time
dark soil nurtures

The endless drone of societal vigor
no longer pounds

Latent critters pass by
under the leafy canopy

Rain drops brush against my cheek

Miles of hidden beauty to traverse
for a brief moment appearing pure

Junction and switchback,
valley and creek,
I go deeper losing all sense of time and place

It’s just me
the pouring rain
the darkening forest

I eventually return to where I started
a hazy memory of the journey

The first time I breathed in weeks
I weep