As Luck Would Have It

As luck would have it
the cold white terror of youth
often diffuses, with time,
into warm pastels.
Sharp corners become rounded, 
burnished by a heart
that fears less and less.

This is the grace of growing older.

As luck would have it
the frenzied quest for Another
can leave a trail of cold ashes
leading back to ourselves...
Only then into our own company and comfort
can another quietly enter.

This too is grace.

As luck would have it
Death often waits
until all the wounds have healed
until all the right colors have glimmered
within every darkness,

until at last
grace is a gift of Light
that we can give
and take

with a turn of our eyes.

John Starnes 1984