Red-Headed

A vast stone Christmas tree of a building
Viewed from across a night time traffic island
Points a yellow fingered steeple at the moon
& diffracts through the October rain.

Standing for a moment enthralled by the beauty
Of this illuminated edifice,
The automotive hypnotic hum
& sound of wet car tyres spraying the kerb

Lulls me into a strange stupor or reverie
Of thoughts of past & of future times.
This resplendent space rocket of a vision
Launches me both back to my boyhood

& to my future self simultaneously.
A 'Saturn Five' & festive tree of the soul
Forcing me to be aware of life's trajectories
Past & present, I am over the moon.

Abruptly I re-enter the world of the real
& have to decide exactly where I am going.
The magic being broken, I turn away from the church
Resigning myself to the inevitable splashdown.