Skipping stones

Selecting a small smooth flat
river rock, he wrote his name
on one side and threw it
skipping across the water.

Standing silently, watching,
he turned quickly as it
sank beneath the surface
to be collected on the bottom.

To him the rippling mirror
was life momentarily touched.
The stone a soul cast out
on an unknown journey.

It was a truth welling up,
a realization that time
and water could not support
the burdens of a life forever.

It would be so easy giving in
to the gravity of his life.
A momentary lapse would mean
another unknown journey.

There was a comfort in that,
he felt a calm, an inner peace.
For the first time he felt
connected to the moment.

Of all the millions of stones
that lay beneath the water,
this stone was different.
This stone had his name on it.

©2012, Donald Harbour