Sanctuary

Hidden behind a shroud of trees, a sanctuary awaits those who know its name. At the threshold abstract forms take shape, welded into metal and carved into stone. The hills of grass incline gently to the garden shade. Cast in shadow the garden’s path twists into darkness. A trickling stream flows beneath a stone bridge, worn by footsteps’ tread. Faint echoes of laughter still linger in the air. A child darts behind a tree, swallowed by the leaves and hidden from their fellow playmate. People gaze at the forest succumb to its beauty for eternity. Its spirit emanates from the trunks of the tree like the resin hardened along the knots. The leaves of palm slope toward the earth below and above. In the courtyard, a stone globe towers to the clouds, only overshadowed by the man supporting its foundation. His chiseled hands cup the solid sphere as his eyes bore to the earth’s core. Sitting cross-legged in front of the globe, of a pair, his partner beyond the stone earth’s horizon. A man and a woman placed on either side in the galaxy of the stone sphere. The stars twinkle in their eyes, the sun glows within their heart. As minutes fade into hours, I leave the world behind and plunge back into reality.