David Albano – Little Red Riding Hood Is A Liar
(Diamond Lake Ontario)
I snap upright
smell of thick dark
slumber dissolves
skin tingles
ears prick
a deep howl
shimmers about my tent
less conquered
and more myth
than the moon
I can only
imagine the source
eyes squeezing shut
black snout pointing
triangle ears furled
moonlight bristling
on rust-gray fur
rocking back on haunches.
cavern mouth
rib cage contracting
drenching
the night
there is nothing new
about this
except
I am here to know
it
wakes me
I move
through the rite
of this howl
emerge holding
an untouchable
gift
David Albano
May-June 2001 Earth First!