A couple of summers ago while I was working at camp, a friend recommended the book "Chasers of the Light" by Tyler Knott Gregson. I ordered it for myself and got through the hard parts of the summer by burying myself in the poetry.

This week I reached the point in the semester when stress is overwhelming and I have so much to think about and get done. On one especially stressful night, I pulled out the book and started reading my favorite poems again. Just like the first time, I was overwhelmed by how beautiful words are when put in just the right order.

I then dug through the poetry notebook I kept with me that same summer at camp and found a poem inspired by Tyler Knott Gregson's style. Here it is, with some fresh edits and slight rewriting:

When the sky melts gray,
cotton clouded sun
and not a star
to decorate the blanket horizon,
when the rain lives in the air
and seems to fall
upside down,
when even the trees
bow their backs to the wind
and cry to the earth,

when I cannot find the light,
it is then my soul bends,
cowers into a mass
against the dark world;
I must bend my knees,
bow my head,
and close my eyes
to find the light.