Darkfire – Dreaming Your Way Home
I.
look to the language
when a nation, a people
has forgotten the dream at the root
the dream-informed song of their birth
their words are corrupt
without compassion
soft & rotten
their dreams are desolate
& night harbors special terrors
II.
it is spoiled
it is over-ripe, yes
ripe for eating
the coyotes are eating yr dreams
III.
now
where is the hearth
where is the village
where is the communal well
dreaming of three ringtail cats
javelina & bobcat
they are sharing the amber afternoon
with mule deer, antelope & bighorn sheep
they are dancing together
on the fire-touched mesa
dancing in the golden grass
it is time to go home,
but
where is the tribe
where is the sacred grove
where is the give-away
IIII.
where the dream is strongest
we speak a language of fire
to make the day equal to the night
hands rough from working the dream
stone & juniper
the tawny winter light
golden with desert dust
& cattail pollen
we wake into a hungry dawn
darkfire
June 21 1986 Earth First!