In the Wind
Over the ridge
Where we came of age
Where we saw the end
Of forgiveness
And the slanted wind
Scratching tracks
Across backs
Of forlorn beasts
Where we grasped
At straws
Across nighttime stars
And wept for the sorrow
Of every tomorrow
In the wind
A Walk in the Woods
On a familiar trail
Under a rising sun
Through the gardens
Of gods
Stepping over
Wild philosophies
On the forest floor
A network
Of fresh movement
Wood and soil
In a dance
Of eternal truth
Steadfast and relentless
Across universes
Of survival
Eulogy for a Friend
In the proper counting of time
Bracing against the need
To say goodnight
Before one more minute
Of wasted awakening
Before one more minute
Of wasted dreams
Before the sun
Cracks through the sorrow
Of the garden’s
Withering
Remembering everything
In the savage stillness
Of loss
The Sorrows of Snow
Sorrow
Seems to be
Something deep below
The battened hatches
Of misery’s lost transgressions
Something too hard
To remember
With everything too much
To consider
But the only thing
That can’t be touched
Is the thing
We always must
Inevitable
As the winds
Bring autumn’s demise
And winter offers up
Regretful wisdom
With each snowy
Sunrise
Another Morning
Chasing life
On broken wings of time
Learning through experience
Not knowledge
Connected to the ideals
Of loss and growing
Through the lessons
Of inevitable demise
But stepping into tomorrow
And the promise
Of another burning sun
Leaves me breathless
In the light of morning
And eager to arise
John Drudge is a social worker working in the field of disability management and holds degrees in social work, rehabilitation services, and psychology. He is the author of four books of poetry: “March” (2019), “The Seasons of Us” (2019), New Days (2020), and Fragments (2021). His work has appeared widely in numerous literary journals, magazines, and anthologies internationally. John is also a Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net nominee and lives in Caledon Ontario, Canada with his wife and two children.