On the Road to God / Ghazal

A MAN ON THE ROAD TO GOD

I met a man on the road to God with the intense face of an owl –
I felt the closeness of diamond-white feathers in the perfect space of an owl

Eyes of divine penetration burn all the way into our souls –
And ignite us in a blaze of love – the secret grace of an owl

Now the owl is not revered universally as being spiritually wise –
In some places “owl” means “stupid” – what abject disgrace for an owl!

Once I was walking in the woodsy hills above Bolinas Bay in California
And a white owl landed in a treetop in a clearing and stared hard at me – a real ace of an owl!

I may be thinking of that owl when I say this man was owl-like to me –
Maybe in primordial Paradise they’re the same – original birthplace of an owl

My heart opened at this person’s gaze on the road to a Beloved God –
Love flooded both and obliterated both – in the divine outer space of an owl

Ameen – in the thick woods hearing Hu-Hu’s of that voice echoing clear –
Feathers tickling still along my tingling arms – ah the sweet embrace of an owl!