The Search Within

By Tanie Natung

A fierce storm was raging on the sea,

Wild waves rose, howling at the sky;

Rain, like daggers, slashed our skin,

And the lone ship was flung up high.

For days and nights, the tempest roared,

Winds and thunder fiercely blending;

It hurled the large vessel to and fro,

The mast moaned low, its timber bending.

The gale grew louder, ghostly with wails,

Then swelled into a wrathful typhoon;

The ship was ripped to brutal splinters,

And we clung to the wreckage in gloom.

In desperation, I took a deep breath,

And dove into the ocean’s core;

To my surprise, the world beneath

Was calm and serene like a silent shore.

***

I climbed a mountain, steep and bare,

Where winds cut deep, and mist hung thick;

The cold bit through to blood and bone,

My steps grew slow, and chest felt sick.

So I curved into the mountain’s heart,

Through rock and frost, and buried snow;

Much to my wonder, the cave inside

Was warm and still, with a gentle glow.

***

The surface may be torn by violent storms,

The peaks may be ravaged by cruel winds,

Yet the peace and stillness that we yearn

Are found within— where the search begins.

By Tanie Natung