A journey to find Her .. (a Sinai mountains trek)

I began my journey to find her,

deep into the heart of hearts

Single-minded I pursued her,

to the exclusion of all else

But with each adamant footstep,

she further eluded my eager grasp

On the first day I grew frantic

going North, then south, then following the sun

With eyes tightly closed against the light,

I left no stone unturned,

yet, the more stubborn she did become

With waning strength, I sought her still

In temples unknown

In the nameless shapes of mountains

In the shadows and the light

But she would not oblige me

And I returned, beaten and tired, frustrated and alone

And in the suffocating closeness of that first night,
I gathered what morsels of energy were left me,
only to face my failure
In the absolute stillness of a dark and dismal night
alone, and sleepless, I licked my painful wounds of defeat

On that second morning,
my heavy heart surrendered to those first rays of the sun
And seeing my sorry state, it shone brighter, for me alone
and with it’s warmth embraced my plight
My soul, naked, took refuge in it’s cloak of light
I fed, hungrily, on the welcome gifts it unveiled
And in my loneliness made welcome company of the wind

I walked without direction,

Sang without a tune

Slowly, shyly, behind their veil of silence,

the mountains softly joined in the silent refrain

The rhythm grew stronger with every step

filling every peak and valley of my trek

As the sun reluctantly parted my company,

I began to build my home

Made my walls of the darkness it left behind

An eternal ceiling of the stars it scattered in it’s wake

A floor of solid Bedouin lore

And windows through my heart

And that night, I slept soundly,

to the forgotten tune

A whispered melody,

of nameless creatures of the night

With the valley for a cradle

And my pillow filled with the gentler memories of the day

On the third day of my journey,
I left my search, my cares behind
And enlightened of the burden,
trod lightly, sprightly on my path
And, in my most unassuming moment,
lo and behold! She came to me unasked

With open arms she welcomed me
With not wrath, nor judgment in her heart
But silently fell in step beside me
And kept me in good company,
till I reached my mark