Public Republic

Eric Sutherland

Photo: kevindooley

I make my way
a joyous escape
to the jagged cliff-crowned
doorway to the mountains
here water shapes every surface
with a wavy swirling motion

like fingerprints left
by a great ancient ocean
each rock face bears
these marine tattoos

here, I am no longer
trapped on the treadmill
but another wild animal
able to explore freely

I am fondled by an under story
of a million fern and trillium
as I follow a single narrow path
through wildflower woods

I am kissed by incessant ticks and thirsty mosquitoes
I am dazzled by five-lined skinks and cave salamanders
I am drawn to dainty dancing dragonflies and painted box terrapins
I am awed by a slew of slithering serpents
and a boundless blue sky surfed by red-tailed hawks

I am cleansed in cool springs thick
with tiny frogs and cautious crayfish
I am baptized in thin creeks that seep
slow from a thousand sandstone crevices in the earth

I am drenched with the sweat of rain, rivers and lakes
and worn with the work of reclaiming
I am happy with guide book and good memory naming
all my sacred relations that inhabit this holy land