"Does life restrain me from thoughts on your mind"

A tribute to a friend and a remarkable actress/poet and human being.

(Dedicated to Fellow Poet and Kindred Friend, Anya Jaenicke, to whom I am indebted for being my "poetic compass" and source of direction)

Does life restrain me from thoughts on your mind;

does it impede my mind's-eye picture of you?

Alas, with my circumscribed point of view

I know this,--that you're of a gracious kind!

A poet and a mentor, you remind

me of a lost faith in what's pure and true,

ideals once held by me and by the few

that all the innocents have left behind.

So, Anya, I extol you as a brother

with these well-chosen lines from this sonnet;

please esteem them (as you would your Mother)

as if your Muse wholly depends on it.

      A guide and lodestar, you have earned my love

      like the poets whose works come from above.