In The Woods Poem by Barry Middleton

I am lost in the woods where the path is a maze,
and still I will stay till the sun starts to fade,
where no one can find me in shadow and haze,
with safety of darkness to come to my aid.

I am seeking a heart that I carved in a tree,
but the comforting darkness denies me the way
that time and the bramble have taken from me,
and taught me to treasure wherever I stray.

I'm content, though alone as the night settles in,
when I hear an owl call from a great hollow beech.
I claim it's a greeting from a welcome old friend,
who reminds me that fate is quite beyond reach.

For hope is elusive when lost in the woods,
where darkness confirms much I misunderstood.