I wandered through woods,
    towering stands of oak and beech,
clamoured over endless swells of golden dunes,
scrambled up and slid down slopes of sun-warmed sand.

I marvelled at the perfect circles
    drawn by blades of restless beach grass,
like the simple circles drawn by my school compass,
like the safe circles drawn by my anxious parents.

I wander now through words,
    thickets of prose and verse,
seeking the absent wonder
    of boyhood.

Text and image © 2013 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.