Scarlet Bird

Eyelids shuttered to block the morning's glare,
Mind's eyes opened to gaze an otherworld's light.
There, illuminated, I saw a scarlet bird, circling,
Diving, and it called to me in a lyrical song,
Each dancing verse pulled from my rumpled bed
Up to skies, where with mad magic, I could fly.

With my feathery companion, I swam through clouds,
Kissed mountaintops, felt sunlight brush
Bare-bottomed toes and pinkened cheeks.
Suddenly, the scarlet bird turned to me to speak,
Not in chirps, but words I understood,
And it revealed the secret that enabled me to fly.

"Birdflight is freedom: We go where we please.
Cloudtops our highways, rivers our roadmaps.
Your heart sent a message as you slept:
'Rescue me from this earthbound prison, show me
The way to liberation, the path to my true future,
Not one mapped by others, but one that I blaze.'

"I answered your call and awarded you flight.
Released you from gravity's irons, set you alight.
The way before you is clear of expectations
And open, at last, to endless destinations.
Now, birdfriend, let yourself sing and soar.
Look only before you: embrace life's allure."

In an illuminated space between earth and sky,
We danced and sang, the scarlet bird and I.
Then, gently, softly, I drifted down,
With a calm I'd never known, rested my head.
Tomorrow, I set a bold new course to travel,
In flight, my soul's shackles unraveled.