poem for the coyotes

What to do, when everything is perfect?

Basically!

Today I saw six coyotes,

running and jumping

across the meadow by the house.

They were so alive and playful.

Nothing else here, in a good sense -

just me and the endlessness of a vast sky,

changing its marvellous painting continuesly.

How many variations of a beautiful sky are there?

How long can one avoid the here and now?

My mind is playing tricks on me,

which is no problem,

as long, as there are  people around, a job,

neighbors playing loud music, city traffic - as long,

always easy to find a target for my thoughts.

But here, even the weather is perfect,

I mentioned the sky already.

I am alone with my mind and the coyotes.

How many perfect sunsets can one bear?

Today, many coyotes jumped across my mind.

Most of them told me gossip about this and that.

They were so alive and playful.

Emptiness, a sky, sunshine, beautiful paintings

of clouds, a tent illuminated by stars at night, quietude,

so much quietude, and the coyotes in my mind,

jumping and gossiping, really busy.

I start to see, I understand, it is nothing,

just my mind trying to remain important,

while in truth, it is already over.

My mind is nothing, emptiness, many variations

of beautiful cloud paintings in all different colours.

What a revelation:

the endlessness is all mine.

I get to decide how to fill it.

(c) Susanne Becker