The Light of the Moon

I’m writing you this

in the light of the moon,

under the stars

and dark of night.

Alone on the sea,

With nothing but the waves

striking my vessel.

The breeze is warm;

that which gently moves my hair.

And the sound of the earth

fills my soul

with solitude.

There is nothing to bother,

nothing to hamper,

the peace of night

on the ocean.

Yet,

in the midst

of all this beauty,

a cloud covers

the light of the moon,

and darkness fills the night.

My vision fades to that

which can be seen

by the sparseness of stars,

that still peer

through the shadow.

And with the darkness

that encompasses all,

comes the knowledge of the breeze,

in its never-ending movement,

that shall remove the cloud

from its path,

and once again fill the void

with that

of the light of the moon.

Oh how much does this,

this vision of mine eyes,

reflect an overpowering likeness,

of that

which envelopes our love.

I sit here

in the light of your love,

under the beauty

of God’s divine power.

Alone with myself,

with nothing but the thoughts of you

striking (oh so gently) my heart.

The time is slow,

that which gently moves our lives,

and the sound of my heart

fills my soul

with loneliness.

There is nothing to disturb,

nothing to hinder,

the peace of love

in my heart.

Yet,

in the midst

of all this love,

a cloud covers

the joy in my heart,

and despair fills my soul.

My hope fades to that

which can be hoped

with what love

that could survive,

through this cloud

which is separation.

And with the loneliness

that envelopes my being,

comes the knowledge of time,

in its never-ending movement,

that shall bring us together,

and once again fill the void

with that

of the light of the moon.

J.P. Wiegand

© Emittravel 1985

This one is kind of long, but it was written in two stages. The first portion was written while sitting on the deck, off the port side, of the USS Elrod (FFG-55) - you'll notice in the picture the "motor-whale boat" in the upper left portion of the shot. This part was actually written EXACTLY the way it took place. I went back in to finish the second portion due to lack of light.

The photo was taken back in 1986 while our ship was in the Caribbean. The USS Elrod has recently finished her last deployment and will be decommissioned. -j.p.

© Emittravel 2014