Equilibrium
Nov 2 2023
In the shallows
where the lake meets the shore
a skim of ice has formed.
The water is still, the ice pure.
I can see
clear to the bottom,
where sharp stones
and algae-covered rocks
dot the muddy sediment.
In chemical reactions
an equilibrium obtains.
In physics
states of matter change,
energy
is gained or lost.
As here,
in this precise moment of balance
at the intersection of water and earth.
As if time had paused
at a tipping point
that could go either way;
a shallow wave,
another night of frost.
Super-cooled water
flashing into ice.
As the planet hurtles through space,
events cascade
faster and faster,
and my own life seem scattered and rushed,
I stop, and take in the stillness.
Fully absorbed,
my field of vision constricts
down to this small contained detail;
the thin skim of ice
the water undisturbed.
The balance
between water and ice
as precise as a ballerina
extending fully upward,
poised
en pointe
on a single pointed toe.
The beauty of stillness.
The calm of time on hold.
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