A Woman, A Straight Drink

A Woman, A Straight Drink, Hardship, Being Robbed Twice in Guatemala, Being Lost and Suicidal, Finding the Path that Leads to the End of Suffering, and Coming Home from the Stormy Seas of Samsara 

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Lost But Found In Guatemala

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It’s 1:45 AM

what’s to be said

about how the past hours

have transpired in theft

Robbed twice by fellow travelers

No passport

No money

Yet I feel joy

what words can do justice

to this feeling of happiness? 

Universal love and a woman

One last kiss 

Green eyes and a smile that pulls me

Our morning moments seem timeless

She is a photojournalist

Who has covered countless war zones

Her working partner had just been killed

She is ten years older

Much wiser in the ways of the world

I feel innocent like a child

She is here to renew until the next war zone

She is unafraid of death

I look at her in awe wanting more time

But she must leave

A hug is shared

I will never see her again 

But I caught a glimpse behind her mask

Now she lives inside me

We will never be apart

She will remain in my heart

at this moment, I feel understood 

at this moment, I’m not afraid

there is someone who recognizes me

who struggles to see the truth

what a beautiful gift

given from on high

That is enough to nourish me

As I wait for my new passport

In Guatemala City

how I trust

how I am amazed

As this feast life has laid out

This is our goodbye celebration 

it’s easy to become attached

I indeed dread her exit

I will never see her again

I can't miss the critical point

That arises every moment

Everything passes away

I watch my happiness

I taste my life

Penniless in Guatemala

I then embrace life

like a straight drink

I drink it smiling

At all that arises

Only to fade away

The grand magician's show of appearances

Then there is nothing but stillness

I crawl into bed

As I disappear

I look at her again

I look one last time in her green eyes

Seeing her smile inspires me

Yet I know if I held her in my arms for eternity

That would still not be what I seek

But I savor this precious life

These moments of touch and care

As I drift off to sleep content

Dreaming of an indestructible Love

That I will find someday

That abides in all of us

I smile

I am at a new beginning

And the future is unknown

As it should be

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Written April 26, 1994, in Guatemala by a very young David Arndt. Robbed twice and trapped in Guatemala with no passport or money, yet still at peace. Sometimes what seems like tragedy is, in fact, the greatest gift.

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David Arndt Passport Picture