Dreaming Freedom Flight Finding Peace

Once a beaming moon face watched my full flight dream,

Stretching my arm wings and silver etched long tail feathers

stabilizing like a rudder, steering and balancing in mid-air,

twisting and turning through lightness of currents,

lifting ever upwards sustained by secondary wing feathers,

smooth gliding, then soaring into orbs of transcendence,

circling, beyond all around the moon, riding on ripples

of peaceful clouds, daunting the dark shadowed earth...

feeling no physical or mental limitations on open planes

of the joyous ever-widening, sweeping arcs of freedom. 

But, then on a curve, I saw the helpless bird of peace

fluttering, to stay afloat, holding a branch in its beak;

its body dove grey, mud-splattered with drops of blood…

Could this be the blood of children from old or new wars?

What cruel factions broke its flight, still undimmed eye?

How could this hope of peace float by, faltering, powerless,

as freedom's right soared its spirit into heavens themselves?

In a moment I swooped down and grabbed the branch

gripped tightly in the beak, and together we rose upwards

twisting and turning through lightness of currents,

bonded by faith and destiny to belong and protect each other

on the strength of my wings, our incessant heart beats, our hopes perpetual glimmer.

We had no fear ... would not be denied the challenging curve, the widest sweep and the highest level to victory.

The moon face glowed brighter still to lighten the earth...

to radiate the truth that life's flight of freedom with peace is a dream to believe.

Annemarie Berukoff