Piecing together all our hopes and dreams,
joining the broken fragments of our lives,
managing the pain of another loss,
full of joy when finally together,
society’s fabric hangs by a thread.
I am enclosed under a canopy of overhanging shade, where majestic trees rustle in dappled sunlight. I am surrounded by shapes, by twisted fronds of birds’ nest ferns and leaf spikes that thrust sharply upwards against the light. A spring bubbles through cushions of moss. Dark green waters trail water lilies; water boatmen judder across the surface of the pond. Softness, sharpness, textured and structured, mingle together, cradling me in the shelter of their arms. Julia Duke