The mirror on its surface looks asleep,
but when you stared, it woke and tried to please
by looking in your eyes and 'round the room
to find reality a common moor
as light that waited hours in the east
flashed and blinded as I took a seat
at breakfast, hearing from the treetops taps
like code recording secrets from the past.
Each night I listen to a stoic owl
ask me who I am in tones so low
it makes me ask whenever someone dies,
who can sleep with no one by their side?
The wind and rain outside lay waste the earth,
while I longed to hear your telltale heart.
Royal Rhodes is a retired educator who taught global religions. He enjoys reading poetry and listening to Classical music. His poems have appeared in numerous literary journals, in print and online. He lives in a small village in rural Ohio, near Old Order Amish farmers.