Harvest Night

Harvest Night

Black silk-clad, barefoot
Steel knife, sharpened carefully
blessed by the water from the stream
that flows through and under the sacred patch

In the center, the canvas spread
will hold the bodies I sacrifice
in the name of medicine
green medicine, good medicine
Gifts of life, freedom from pain,
communion with the green.

No moon, utter darkness but for the low, dancing yellow
of the lantern flame
making the shadows of the tall plants dance wildly
as the gentle night breeze blows the flame
For this sacrifice is forbidden
and darkness is the domain of this green teacher.
For now.

Bless, cut, give thanks.
Bless the blade, wipe it clean on the black silk of my garment
place the green lady on the canvas, bless and thank, move on
kneeling, from tough stem to tough stem
Bless, cut, give thanks.
Bless the blade, stack, move forward.

I bind the bodies in bailing rope and canvas
For they are made of her, too.
Her perfume is overwhelming
The green goddess' musk
covers me
and I lay a moment beside her,
under the stars
in her place of birth, life and death.
and I feel her spirit commingle with the pines
and the goldenrod, and the coyote heard faintly and far off

Winter is coming,
and through it, the tendrils of her smoke
will carry my prayers and thanks
to those stars, the coyote and the pines
and each breath will be dedicated to the prospect
that in all things, The Green holds an answer
and I hope that I may continue to have a hand
in speaking her truth..
My poem is but a poor repayment of her sacrifice.