Preserve the dawn.
Extend the dusk.
Embrace the midday sun.
Let me linger longer
within this atmospheric
light show.
Not through mere windows,
but outdoors, encompassed by
this magnificent dome of blue
connecting distant horizons.
Eventually,
familiar constellations
will appear,
and I will wait
with hopeful anticipation
for another tomorrow.
© 2019 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
On this cold, clear night
ten thousand stars burn overhead.
It's ten degrees and getting colder,
but this older man who feels young
stays outside long enough
to find his favorite constellations:
Orion and Cassiopeia;
dependable and constant,
light years apart.
Coming into the house,
he decides to warm his wife
with a January fire, with firewood
he cut, split, and stacked last October,
when the woods were aflame with color,
and time was burning fast.
Flames grow in the fireplace,
sparks rise like a constellation,
and passion returns to burn
on this cold clear night.
© 2017 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations: Home
In loving memory of Aaron Richard Havenga
April 2, 1975 ~ November 20, 1994
Now, after two decades,
it's difficult to recall
the precise and precious
sound of your voice.
The relentless passage of time
has muted from my memory
the sound of your spoken words;
like sand accumulated on the shore,
like songs of birds gone for the winter.
When I'm outdoors,
I still sense your presence:
on a hiking trail, your easy pace;
your long stride when running a race;
the kind eyes that warm your face;
your admiration for a mountainous place.
When I write about you,
my eyes still burn
with tears that confirm
my love for you.
Is this a sign that verifies
a brief, but true connection?
The day sky still arches above,
as when it brightened your way,
but the deep longing lingers.
The constellations remain the same,
as when they amazed your nights,
but the loss becomes a suffering love.
Familiar birds return each spring,
but the sound of your voice...
nothing.
A precious gift
has been lost.
© 2016 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. Beverly Beach State Park - Newport, Oregon
2. Grand Teton National Park - Wyoming
3. Allegheny National Forest - Pennsylvania - 1994
Try to measure the great gaps
between the stars;
the width, the depth of the universe.
Within this eternal theater,
the black curtain of night
reveals familiar constellations.
Orion and Cassiopeia,
accent these winter skies
on this calm, cold night.
You are invited to watch
the silent performance
of ten-thousand stars
burning on this midnight stage.
© 2015 Richard Havenga
