Out beyond the back of the house,
past the dark shapes of roofs
and the rising of black branches–
elm and maple and oak and a solitary pine–
the tall steel skeleton of the radio tower
stretches its stark lines into the air,
spanning the shift from orange to rose
to the still soft blue of lingering night,
out past all of that,
comes the coloring of another dawn.

This sun will rise on the just and the unjust,
bring blessing on both good and evil,
and misfortune as well.
There will be both storm and calm,
scorching and freezing,
loss and gain,
birth and death.

With each breath,
I will embrace the challenges
and face the blessings
that have been prepared for me.
And in my resting,
will try to lie down a better man
than the day found me.

H. Arnett
2/12/16