I sit there, in my own little world.

The fountain flows like a babbling brook as I inhale deeply.

 I’m alone with my thoughts, and nothing else.

Just me, I sit on a smooth rock in the middle of the lake.

The soft murmur of kids

playing on the swings doesn’t bother me.

Neither does the sound of their mothers

socializing by the picnic table ten yards away.

 I dip my toes in the chilly water and squish around.

The tadpoles swarm away from my feet.

Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale

I breathe deeply

as I pull my feet out of the water

Eyes closed, mouth shut, ears detached

I stand up, with my eyes closed, and walk across the pond

I stop, not ready to leave this heavenly place

I begin wandering down the stream

My feet squish on top of the soft algae

Eyes still closed, mouth still shut, ears still detached

All I see, all I say, all I hear are the thoughts

deeply embedded in my mind.

The loose ends of my pants freely

hover on top of the water behind me

All feeling escapes my body until I feel nothing

I don’t feel the algae underneath me,

I don’t feel my hands brush along my legs, I don’t feel anything.

I continue on the path of nothingness,

on the path of dreams and thoughts and nothing else

I walk until my eyes open, my lips unlatch,

and my ears hear everything from the soft cicadas

buzzing to the birds chirping in the trees

And come back to reality