An Ode to Douglas

“An Ode to Douglas”

by Nicole Costa

It’s winter now 

And

Even paradise 

Gets cold and rainy

Nostalgia 

Takes a hold 

And

Reminds me 

Of home 

Again

It feels like

Autumn 

In the Poconos

So much purging 

And

Lessons learned 

In those mountains

I can’t think

Of

That place 

Without 

Thinking of you 

A Yogi cowboy

An angel 

Amongst 

The sages

In just a few years 

Brother 

We have turned 

So many pages

Remember 

Sitting outside 

Of

The shrine 

Four hundred acres

Of

Sacred land

That we helped 

Design

Me telling you 

How one day 

I would move 

To paradise 

And now 

I am here 

And

You are here

With me

You weren’t 

The one

I expected 

To be with 

On this journey 

But they all

Betrayed me 

And

Your spirit 

Crossed over

Returned home

In Arkansas

On Interstate 30

Abraham 

Was called 

A friend 

Because he knew 

The heart of God

I’ve known 

Thousands of people 

Yet very few 

Could comprehend 

A fraction of 

My heart 

And

Sometimes 

That’s hard

Thankful and blessed 

To have known 

Ones

Like yourself 

Who understood me

In a way 

That no words 

Were required 

That’s a gift 

Of

The Divine

I am honored 

To have 

Known you

As my brother 

My friend 

And

A new member 

Of

My Spirit Tribe 

From on high

Thank you 

For the gift 

I will wear 

Your hat

With pride 

And

Duck tape 

On the inside

I laughed 

When I saw it 

That’s something 

My grandma 

Would do 

She’d say 

There you go 

Nicky

Now it fits you

The saying goes

You can’t walk 

A mile in another 

Man’s shoes

It never said 

Anything 

About his hat 

So together

We’ll write 

Our own tune 

I polished it up 

And

Anointed it 

With sacred oils 

I attached 

Blue jay’s feather 

That she gave me 

For strength 

In the Everglades 

I AM happy

To be able 

To take a portion 

Of

Your spirit 

With me 

On this

Next Level 

Of

My journey  

I told you 

That one day

I would take 

Your hat 

I didn’t know 

That it would come 

From your sister 

At your old house 

In Keller Texas 

As we both were 

Passing through 

Opposite directions 

Guided by you 

Right timing 

Right place 

It was nice 

To have met her 

Chat for a while 

See her face 

It was just

Like yours 

Blue eyes 

White hair

Pale skin 

It was like 

Seeing 

An old friend 

Again

I know you are 

With me 

But I miss 

Your smile 

Thalia gave me 

Your picture 

Making the venture

Worthwhile 

I keep it 

In the visor 

To protect me 

When I drive 

And

As a reminder 

That I am still loved 

From the other side

Though our time 

On this earthly plane

Together was brief

I will remember you

Always my friend

Until we meet again

Namaste

🙏🏽

In loving memory 

Of

Douglas Alberts 

August 21, 1946 - December 11, 2019