Fractal Shadows

Take the jagged spine of the Karakoram 

as seen from the heights of Haramukh, 

then examine the folds on the face of K2, 

creased with valleys of shadow and snow.

See the ravines with ribbons of ice 

heaped with scree and hills of rubble –

their ripples and rills reprise the peaks

in the span of the Karakoram.

Trace the chiseled edges of Ireland 

around an image taken from space, 

then zoom to the shores of Kerry and Cork 

where promontories part the sea. 

Swoop over cliffs at Mizen Head Bridge 

and follow the surf line east 

past fissured inlets and hideaway coves 

that reprise the whole coastline of Éire.

Probe your life with a one-word prayer, 

confess your worst day in a diary, 

compose an account of your favorite year, 

then draft your own obituary. 

Savor the play of creation – 

how days reprise decades, 

how moments harbor whole lives, 

how we inhabit the fractal shadows. 

Aerial View of the Baltoro Glacier, by Guilhem Vellut, Paris