Footsteps in the Dark

In the midst of mostly unfamiliar faces,

we stood encircled in the fading light.

Our guide, the one I have often

followed in the light,

welcomed us to this opportunity 

to walk in silent single file

along a path as the sun

bowed to the coming night.

Second to last,

I was comforted by the fact that I was followed

by one who lived on the land,

as I felt my legs unsteady on the stone steps

and found and sometimes lost my footing

along the rock-strewn trail.

Off balance within as without, 

now robbed of sight

and easy steps.

I moved more slowly than those ahead.

On the rare flat spaces, I hurried to catch up.

Breathless on the steep ascent,

I was so caught up in not toppling over,

Only now, in this quiet sitting,

can I see the features of the trail we traveled

as clearly as if in daylight.

The evening’s ceremony

resumed in a sitting circle

with the sharing of a sacred drink

that eases the mind

and gives voice to the

murmurs from deep within.

No longer strangers but not quite familiars,

we shared stories as well as cacao

and began to open hearts one to one another.

A smile came to my lips

with the recognition that,

as the evening ended,

a sangha had formed,

fading like the circles

from a pebble tossed in water,

yet forever wedded

to the memory

of our footsteps in the dark.