Distracted by Beauty

Sometimes it splashes you in the face
     brazen and breathtaking
   as ice cold water

But how many more moments
   slip by unnoticed

(for she rarely raises her voice)

It is the tiny voice
     thin as a bee's whine
          Look at me!
it is the flash in the corner of your eye
     What was that?
          that bright color
   that darting movement?

Or it can be as silent and steady
   as the moon in the evening's blackness

It only takes the pause
     the double take
          the turning round
     the gazing in rapt attention

for the little squeak or flash
     or shining, unseen now

to bloom into something wondrous
     beautiful
          fascinating
               priceless

a gift you almost stepped on

by Celeste Boudreaux, October 2022

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