Forest Cottage

FOREST COTTAGE

The forest is winning again,
in its own relentless way.
It is pulling this old cottage
back into its deeper self,
reclaiming this precious space,
slowly restoring the balance.

It is nature that is cracking
these walls, its weighty growth
that his broken through the roof.
But, there is no real death here,
there is only life that can
no longer be held at bay.

You arrived here by chance,
now take the time to look around.
Touch new leaves, smell wild flowers,
feel the air, fresh from the forest.
Take your leave in your own good time, 
there is no need to close the gate.

RUIN

Light does not stray here anymore,
It passes through these broken walls.

Sounds do not echo anymore,
There is no roof to hold them in.

The scents of life have gone from here,
Decay grabs my every breath.

I touch the walls, but they are cold,
The hearth has left them long ago.

Yet, still my shadow flickers through
To signal that life carries on.

My feet still rap on the stone floor,
Like the heartbeat of the world out there.

And carried here on a brief wind,
The smell of the forest ghosts by.

On the window sill, a flower grows,
I reach out, touch it, then let it go.