One Simple Truth

The day draws ever closer
  when I shall leave this place,
  ending this incredible journey
  to Viet Nam.

Perhaps, I'll be back,
  but one can never be sure
  what the future will bring.

Beyond seeing family and friends
  over the holidays
  and a writing sabbatical
  to start off the new year,

I have no idea what comes next.

It is somewhat disconcerting
  to look out and not see
  the breadcrumbs I usually
  toss into my future
  to lead me forward.

I haven't tossed any breadcrumbs
  this time.
  I don't know what breadcrumbs
  to toss,
  nor would I know which way
  to toss them
  if I actually held them in my hands.

None of us ever really knows the future.
  And living as if we do know
  merely dims our awareness
  of that fact,
  providing a sense of comfort
  in the dark of the unknown.

There is a part of me that is fully intrigued
  with this idea of letting the future
  come to me.

Always, I have defined and planned,
  forged my way through the thicket of now
  to arrive at the envisioned future.

So, I am not skilled in this endeavor,
  either intellectually or emotionally.
  Of that I was made humorously aware
  when my response to sitting quietly was to
  plan - in detail - a month-long writing sabbatical!

How do you simply allow spirit?

How do you quiet your mind?

How do you honor your fears without
  giving them control?

How do you really,
  I mean really,
  become quiet
  to hear the call of spirit?

One thing I do know...
  I want to walk the path of Spirit.
  Of that one simple truth, I am certain.