"Hurdle Mills"

I lived in Hurdle Mills North Carolina for a time, it was like a fairy tale... for the most part.

Beneath the morning sky of gold,

Where crimson leaves and amber fold,

I walk the path, the country’s thread,

Where silence lingers, soft as dread.

The trees, they whisper, ancient songs,

Of days where everything belongs,

And every step, so slow, so light,

Is shadowed by the fading night.

"Come, forget the world behind,

Here, your troubles cease to bind."

The wind would sigh, its voice a plea,

"Stay with us, where you are free."

The gravel speaks beneath my feet,

A rhythm soft, a pulse so sweet.

Each breath I take, a gift, a grace,

In this, my sacred, secret place.

I’ll never lose this time, this space,

Where autumn's kiss would brush my face.

Where all the sorrow, all the pain,

Dissolves like dew in morning rain.

"Heartstrings frayed, yet whole once more,

Within this peace, there is no war."

The leaves, they fall, like whispered cries,

But in their dance, no sorrow lies.

For here, the earth and sky are one,

In hues that blaze beneath the sun.

And all the heartache, all that’s wrong,

Is swallowed in the autumn’s song.

I'll carry it, forevermore,

This country road, this distant shore,

Where beauty reigns, and all is still,

In Hurdle Mills, beneath the hill.

And though I walk this path alone,

In every leaf, I find my home.

In every breeze, a voice that sings,

Of healing winds and untold things.

"Stay," they call, "your heart’s undone,

But here, dear soul, you are the sun."