Golden Eagle flies warmly over Heart Lake.
Brown feathers soaring, quick breath of disappearance.
Bald Eagle appears flying in opposite direction—
clawing upward thrust to flashing prism sun,
joining six other eagles in kaleidoscope sky,
swooping and swerving raptor alchemy.

Circus birds without trapeze, flying alchemist,
netless, swirling high above Heart Lake.
Mirrored in infinite sky.
Prism rays beaming from sun, quickly disappearing.
Squinting eyes look straight up into sunshine.
Desiring a closer look, I must move in upward direction.

Hoisting heavy backpack, moving forward, vertical, direct!
Stepping towards fluttering wings speaking only of wind and alchemy.
Seven eagles turning invisible stones gold and sunny,
far above gleaming, rippling arteries of Heart Lake.
Over High Ridge Trail flying migrators soon disappear,
pausing long enough for me to see something of myself in their fleeting sky.

I long for such freedom to soar in such skies.
Soulful wings flapping without
directionality, along with delicious disappearing.
Flying spirit of my own alchemy.
Deep in the core of my own Heart Lake.
Spiral center of my own sacred sun.

Backpacking rugged High Ridge Trail, October sunshine.
Fresh memory of eagles flying invisible sky.
Down far below, Golden Eagle Lake,
looking more like a heart from this direction.
Water of heart beating alchemical,
lightening my steps as body slowly disappears.

Wings take flight as boots disappear,
taking off into warm waiting sun.
Backpack gone, flying joy of alchemy,
becoming light air of ineffable sky.
Soaring spirit of four directions.
Looking below, seeing my shadow passing over Golden Eagle Lake.