Reprieve: Song to Sestina

Happily going along, I find this,

unbeknownst to me, the sestina form

A new puzzle for the resting of mind

Chartered territory long ago laid

By Daniel historic and Daniel now.

May I have this dance? I say to myself

With nothing to do, I rest in myself,

the structure wafting me along in this

Arriving, pausing, backing up, and now

discovering, climbing into this form

that innocence, that's always been, is laid

bare, nothing to do but enjoy free mind

What comes is what comes, penetrating mind

with that which effortlessly is myself

Form and formless interweave, nature laid

before itself as the seed carries this

code, its modifying of subtle form

reminiscent somehow only of now

That which springs forth is the What Is of now

Here again, nothing to do, freeing mind

offering no thing to the empty form

giving everything to empty myself

Reminds me of walking one step, just this

then the next, each open, empty, each laid

As itself, but not distinct, again laid

as itself, but not apart from each now.

To speak of the whole seems trivial in this

kind of insight, as cliches work the mind

dry and so tired. To refresh myself

again, I climb up this jungle gym form

Surrendering without collapsing form

The formless emanates like gold leaf laid

in the thinnest of sheets over myself,

bathing me free of I, me, mine. And now

this reprieve sings the song empty of mind

to the chorus of Sestina. Just this.

An Empty, Empty form is Happy, Happy now.

Only need is to have laid out the table; mind finds its own nourishment. I find myself in This.