Thirty Six | Wayne Visser

I am thirty six
And in one long short year
My world has changed
Expanded
Intensified
With more shades
Of dark and light

I have ascended to summits of hope
And tunnelled through caves of despair
Without giving up

I have skipped across meadows of ecstasy
And waded in swamps of sadness
Without being trapped

I have showered under waterfalls of passion
And walked on glaciers of numbness
Without losing heart

I have strolled on beaches of contentment
And battled with tides of disappointment
Without being drowned

Each frontier I cross
Expands my awareness
And deepens my understanding

Each horizon I chase
Widens my experience
And heightens my sensitivity

Each new low I plumb
Lowers my expectations
And raises my beliefs

Each new high I scale
Softens my defences
And hardens my resolve

I am tired
And yet I feel that my reserves
Are being steadily replenished

I am adrift
And yet I sense that the wind
Is blowing in the right direction

I am alone
And yet I seem to be starting
To open my heart to possibility

I am scarred
And yet I am a little more prepared
To contemplate trusting again

I no longer brush away my tears
For they help me to smile
With my eyes

I no longer curse the darkness
For it helps me to pay attention
To the light

I no longer fear the pain
For it helps me to know beauty
More intensely

I no longer hide from uncertainty
For it helps me to cherish moments
Of knowing clarity

I am thirty six
And I have emerged
From the cocoon of self-pity
Bewildered
Relieved
With wings
Still wet and crumpled

Book

Life in Transit: Favourite Travel & Tribute Poems

This creative collection, now in its 2nd edition, brings together travel and tribute poems by Wayne Visser. The anthology pays tribute to the likes of Nelson Mandela, Maya Angelou, Barack Obama, Antoni Gaudí & Leonardo da Vinci, and reflects on travels ranging from China and South Africa to Ecuador and Russia. Life is lived in the in-between / In transit / Between coming and going / Between staying and moving on / Between here and there / And what we call home / What we call settled or contented / Is merely a resting place / A station for refuelling / A nexus for reconnecting / A junction for changing direction. Buy the paper book / Buy the e-book.