THE LAKE
Between the trees
I see water standing
in a bowl of green rushes.
The water is quiet.
It is still
and blue
and cold.
It is a lake
with land all around it.
It is a lake.
The sheep drink
long and steadily.
They stand in the shallow water
at the edges of the lake.
Their little pointed feet
dig deep into the mud
of the lake banks.
I see colored fish
beneath the water
swimming in a rainbow line.
I throw stones into the lake.
The water pushes back in circles
to take the stones.
The dogs swim far out
into the cold waters.
They are thirsty and hot.
I have never seen a lake before.
Gentle rain pools I have seen
and angry flood waters,
but never before
a still, blue lake.
It is beautiful.
A lake is beautiful.
