It was sunset. April 24th 1983, the day time changed, the day we turned our clocks forward for Daylight Savings Time. And the evening was perfect.

It was safer, then, for a woman to go outside in the evening glow and enjoy the sunset and solitude. I felt drawn, almost by instinct as a sensory mechanism, so I followed my instincts to the still pond in the park, near where I lived.

There, I sat on a bench, all to myself. And watched, in quiet solitude, a beautiful swan gliding, moving continuously and effortlessly. Lighted only by the moon. An important signification. As I sat in harmony, my soul lit with its oneness.

The Swan

One swan on a pond
Is gliding through the water
In moonlit hours.

You can order my poetry collection, including this poem, here: Reflections of My Heart.

Original text ©2025 by Karen Lynn-Chlup. All rights reserved. Image by izarbeltza from Catalunya, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons.