enchanted

I listened from a great distance.
Yes truly. Yet time unconcerned
vanished in mere moments
of hearing her captivating voice.
But I felt nothing of that space
weighing down upon me,
as I was sure it must have done.
Rather, it was as if she were here
beside me, her hand in mine,
her warmth imbuing each moment
with the sweetest tenderness.

I looked at the somber mountains
surrounding this arid valley
and saw them gleeful glimmer
as they had not done in ages.
I breathed in the once stale air,
allowed it to course through me
filling my lungs with vigor,
and felt immediately refreshed.
I listened to my heart beating
with a youthful vitality that I
thought had long since dissipated.

Each word she spoke touched
my once sorrowful soul
like a beloved song, like a
primal prayer, as if somehow
they had been enchanted.
En. Chant. Yes. That was it.
For there is indeed a magic,
an enchantment in the spoken word
that humanity has long attended.
As have I. So have we all. As
beyond the illusions resides a truth.

I listened enraptured.
And in her voice
I perceived serenity
and a joyful hope
beyond measure.

salt lake city 07 may 2022