The Dust That Sunlight Exposes

The dust that sunlight exposes
Falls from eyes
That look at length
At scaly flesh
And wonder
How long I must walk
Down this path
Through the silent woods.

I cannot sit on the stump
With green, wild stems
Pushing through its surface;
I cannot lie down on this
Bed of dead leaves, small twigs,
And dark soil, so
I must keep walking
To know what it is
I want to snatch
From the sunlit air,
Hoping it is not just
The dust of days wearily lived.