The Sadness of the Long Night by James Piatt

I heard the haunting voice of the western screech 
owl like a human voice shrieking through the dark 
puzzled thunder of night, it awakened my fretting 
mind, and illuminated my ebony memories. The
voice, like rain pouring through the gaps in the 
weary hours of the night caused me to contemplate 
the absurdity, of my existence: 
And as I listened to the loneliness 
of a howling coyote, 
slinking through the night on jaunty haunches 
searching for the world’s missing symbols 
in the far distance of time and space, dawn’s glow 
like an apricot fire flowed down the startled mountain, 
like lava.
As the heat bred eerie memories into
my thoughts, the sound of my breath 
cutting through the mist, started unraveling, and 
I wept for all the hours that have vanished 
from my life.

About the Poet:

James, an octogenarian, is a Best of Web nominee and three time Pushcart nominee. He earned his doctorate from BYU, and his BS, and MA from California State Polytechnic University, SLO. He has had four collections of poetry; “Solace Between the Lines,” “Light,” “Ancient Rhythms,” and “The Silent Pond,” over 1,550 poems. 35 short stories and five novels  published worldwide in over 225 different publications.  He writes poetry to maintain his sanity, and  hopes to succeed some day.