Bliss Poem by T. Alfred Norman

Half a world away, yet
Still closer than the one
I'm living in. There is a
world that calls me back again.
Living on within my mind, behind my eyes,
And everywhere above and below the skies.

It is. Living in my heart,
With every drum beat.
All the muddy huts, souls and feet.
Singing out their monsoon hymns,
Upon this foreign land we dance
To the melodies of a heavenly band,

They, me, we carry our crosses
In solemn procession. Candled
hands and faces glow, wax and fade,
down dimly drenched Bliss.
To points unknown,
darkened by shade but never abandoned.
Stranded on this island,
but always together.

It is. Living in your smile.
Living in the sweat that leaks
down the back of your neck.
The blisters on your heel.
The scars on your face.
Mosquito bites. A sunburn.
Little pains which let us know
we can take even more
and still carry our candles and crosses
deeper into the shadows.
And always find Bliss.