Meditation
Breathe out the weight of memories
Inhale a fresh new day
My mind is clear, balance secure
The past just slips away
Ghosts no longer touch me
They weigh nothing, anyhow
As I recite my mantra
I am here, and this is now
Future worries stalk me
Listing things that I should fear
Painting pictures of disasters
Robbing me of what is dear
They would steal away this moment
Add wrinkles to my brow
‘Til I deflect their power
For I am here, and this is now
I turn and hear you breathing
Just before the morning’s call
Wrap my arms around you
And warm you like a shawl
I embrace this moment
That came to me, somehow
And say once more, with all my heart
You are here, and we are now
Bradley Harper is a retired US Army Colonel and pathologist with extensive experience in autopsies and forensic investigation. Along with clinical experience, he had four commands, and is the only non-Italian to ever receive the Knights of Malta award for his support of the Italian Army. A life-long fan of Sherlock Holmes, upon retirement he received his Associates in Creative Writing from Full Sail University, to help him write the book–A Knife in the Fog–that he’d always wanted to read. Each Christmas, he and his wife play Mr. & Mrs. Claus.
