You

"Keep your face towards the sunshine 

& shadows will fall behind you"

-Walt Whitman

{for my 'Pakistani' friend}

 For no apparent reason,

her face became a smile

which blossomed and overflowed

into laughter after a while.

She was walking in no direction

that was precise or even known,

yet she knew where she was going

and made that path her own.

There was a whimsical sense about her –

something that couldn’t be caught,

like laughter or the sun’s rays

and all the things that can’t be taught.

The strength that seemed to guard her

had grown from scars of time,

of lessons learnt, and times she’d fell

and from all of life combined.

She faced the shining sunlight

and let the shadows fall behind her

and the joy that was her very life

is what she let define her.

And the beauty of the chaos

that was her – each everyday –

shone brightly in her eyes

and begged a friend to stay.

Yes, she knew that what ever happened

 - what ever lay ahead

would be guided by her Creator

and so she let herself be led

towards peace and true forgiveness,

and a meaning for that road,

towards grace and love and kindness

and all the joy that overflowed.