That feeling

I would trade all that I have

to visit that feeling one last time

Not to be young again, for that urge has long passed

But to experience once more, that mild electrical charge

passing gently through myriad axons to my cerebral cortex and

dispelling, for a while at least, any notion of despair

Enjoyed, even in younger days, only occasionally and without warning

Unrelated to any self-induced stimulation

A chemical reaction far more subtle and natural than any other

A serendipitous coming together of hormonal surges

A fortuitous collision of atoms

giving very meaning to existence

In a thousand years or so, these glorious life-affirming moments

will fall victim to empirical scientific analysis, and become worthless

But for now, they serve to confirm that life, as we currently understand it,

does indeed still have purpose

For some, sadly, such pleasurable sensations will be hopelessly lost with the passing of youth

But for others, who see sunlight through dense forest, they can surely be experienced again

But such feelings cannot be traded for, and prayer is always futile

So I must hope that somehow, borne of the elements,

of flora and fauna, of people, of place and of time

And underpinned by love, trust, joy and of a hatred of hate

This glorious feeling will run through me yet again

to arrest my failing positivity, and re-kindle hope