A Journey of the Mind

I open the cover and my finger brushes the page-a dry caress.
The paper bends slightly as I turn it and continue the trip into a new existence.
It will last as long as I keep turning the page, and even beyond that.
Flights of fancy, booked with anticipation
of a new discovery, a new thrill, a new love.
Words direct the journey down the road
they've not taken, but know just the same.
I seek each combination of letters and sounds-
meanings possessing more dimension than I'll ever fathom.
Words drive me, carry me over the threshold of the here and now.
Can the myriad combinations of sound and shape create vehicles for
understanding, for soothing, for exciting, for change?
I ride the words as one might ride a staid horse or a bucking bronco or a prancing pony, or even a stubborn mule.
Around the ring with grace and finesse, around the track at breakneck speed, through the furrows, pulling and prodding: which gait will come next, as my fingers turn the page?
Rein me in, drive me on-direct my next move as I wait for the word.