rapped in beauty

all around there is beauty

the delicate petals of the iris
it's sweet scent
the complexity of its inner sanctum
and the screams of children
thrown from a bridge
and the hero in his boat
David Haag with his wife
find the girl clinging
to her brother
who is silenced
forever
and just behind Ray's in Veneta
are the meadows of lupines
or some such beauty
right there behind the cold building
of displaced stones
and people seeking sustenance
there they are
like echoes across the fields
where gods and goddesses play
unseen but not unfelt
by our simple humanity
and women will always struggle
even after men and women
put down their arms of war
and women will fight not to be
beaten, raped, and tortured
and women will fight to simply be thought of as
human beings
as attempts are made
to steal their freedom
by those who are powerless and empty
and use force
to express themselves

it happens here and there
and everywhere
in between and all around...

all around us is beauty
and beautiful flowers unfold from the earth
in spring
as they break the soil
and yearn to be
their complex
beautiful selves
they happen here
and there

and there we are
on the threshold of beauty
in a world of insanity

i wrap myself in beauty
and embrace the world