(©Longshanks 1990)

Surrounded by the vastness of this beautiful forest
I sit here on the top of an ancient pyramid
Enjoying the healing warmth of the sun
Breathing the hot summer air
Playing with the scorched and withered weeds
that grow in the cracks of this monument
Looking down on the treetops,
watching the birds busy with their parts
of natures everlasting cycles

Wishing that this moment could last forever
wondering about the fact that I may be
just one in a long line of men
who must have found and climbed this top before me
in the many centuries that have gone by
since this ancient civilisation passed away

How did people live then
How did they spend their time?
How did they earn a living?
Were they feeling happy?

Here I sit, feeling almost one
with this ancient structure beneath me
Smelling the wonderful scent
of a forest after the rain
Remembering the gentle falling of waterdrops
not more than an hour ago
Gazing towards the disappearing clouds
the tiny dots in the distance
Listening to the soothing sounds of nature
Turning my gaze towards the soft murmur of the river
flowing slowly through the silent arches
of the waiting watchhouse with its vast empty halls

In this dream
it takes only one giant leap
to plunge into
the cool freshness of the wating river

And as I emerge, I see the impressive silhouette
of the guardhouse against the blazing sun
And I let myself float through the middle-arch
into the slowly twisting waterlanes
of the forgotten city

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