the lake i go to

the woods are dark
and deep,
I've been through these trees
before.
the lake
and stream beside
the path.
it's lovely this time
of year,
before the trees are full
and green.
i know this way,
I've gone down this road
before
when a love one died,
when
friends have passed
away, as parents
aged. I've been here
before love
and during,
walking hand in hand
with someone
now just a memory.
I've walked and walked
alone,
in between love.
I've been walking this same
trail
for nearly twenty years
now.
dirt and grass,
stone.
i love that it stays
the same, it circles wide
and far,
for miles under
every kind of sky,
whether blue
or grey. it stays as it
is, despite
my ever changing life,
where nothing lasts
for long, where no one
ever stays.