Children’s book Illustrator Key Nielson, “East of the Sun West of the Moon”
anatomy of stillness
the moon is yawning
and fog hugs the ground
as dew gathers at the tips of Everything
this Everything glows,
silvery
the pulse of insects
sounds like
blood flowing through veins
and the earth is cool and moist
beneath my feet
the stillness
reminds me of my center
like the eye of a storm would
the deep-night stillness
gives me needed pause
in a world chasing its tail
soon enough
my thoughts
begin to match the tone
of this refreshing, twilight gown
which cloaks me
and swaddles something
shaking in me
until it brings me calm
and then
wonder
wonder can open me up, again
i lean back
to look at the clear, night sky
as the sound of my breath gently fills my ears
i am small again
and the stars are grinning
—
Aug 5, 2017 – Chattanooga, TN – a moment of pause and a moment to write about what it feels like
Lindsay Kolasa 