1.
a salmon lies in a stream
lets the cool
wash past him
stares straight
ahead ignores the bear
at the water’s
edge waits
silent for release
is consumed
in a halo
of concentration
a bear walks through a forest
2.
a buzzard sits heavy
on a great ursine
corpse left
empty and nude
there in the redwoods
a barren life-giver
bleeds on the low
ground-plants the
salty moisture of life
3.
a tree grows lonely
on a beach
back from the shore
last of her kind
she smells salt
silent venom
etching
and drying her roots
spreads out
holy arms
to Death
and to Beauty
4.
a boy lies on a
bearskin altar
plays
the unwilling
victim offered up
his god
cannot see
his love fierce
reflection
of the saltwood flames
licking up inside
the glowing
crowns of the saints
|
|
