if you were out
on the frozen tundra
on a dark night
just a sliver of a moon
a tiny slice
of dinosaur memory
so quiet
you can hear the air sliding
across water turned solid
a wolf
on the distant hill
don’t think you are alone
even though
the daughters are gone
heart turned
inside out
the Ancient Ones
are breathing with you
slow and steady
thoughtless thoughts
in your mind
as crisp as the crunching snow
under your boots
this dark
so comforting
though you know you are dying
nothing to hang onto
even though perhaps your Beloved
will bring his warm body
against you
with hair in so many
interesting places
this is not the guarantee
the small self
hoped for
just something else
to die to
yet the sure-footed creatures
with complicated antlers
come steady
with the Old Man Sorcerer
to snuffle you
and Pray
warm breath
turns to stone
before it is exhaled
you can tell in your heart
that this is the Promised Love
promised by the Luminous Ones
inside
the body of the Mother
promised by the Shining Ones
glittering in the sky
and in your blood
how can you think
you are separate?
though it’s true
the heart
cannot stay intact
with the terrible longing
for this Grace
that is already yours
that is actually
who you Be
once you stop pretending
that you are a fool
and declare yourself Keeper
of the Medicine Songs
and stand up tall
even as the sickness
oozes out of your belly
no matter
it is just passing through
on the wings of Grandfathers Breath
Tunkasila Oniwan
the Faith in the Prayer
and the Answer
already floating
in the atmosphere
come down with me
to the Underworld
oddly enough
it seems the only way Home
to know myself as frozen tundra
and Creator of it
no matter the latitude
or season
