The Excellence Of Loneliness

Now I toast the excellence of loneliness -
That special part of grief
Where the heart stands still,
Unable to beat even a hateful thrust;
Where the Eye of the Mind blinks only for
Those momentary battles fought within sleep.

It was here I learned
Of that vital space they call Love;
Here, I battled endlessly
A monster which proved nothing
But my own shadow
Cast alight by the flame of another
Against the very walls of my soul.

Like a child fearing the dark,
I called upon my God
(As an infant to his mother)
For any sparse yet reassuring ray.

(How juvenile, indeed,
When, alas, viewed through the mature eye of memory–in the Light of day).

Answered, were gentle words of safety
To that dark corner of a youthful bedroom.
(How fiercely I fought a monster who never attacked–yet, not a finger did I raise!)

Victory was sweetest when my silence
Again proved serene;
Sleep, again, found slumber.

But, I did finally understand the meaning
Of Light;
Of shadows;
And of sleep.

Only now can I recall–
I was never, ever,
Alone.