A circle made
By learning feet
Above the roots
As walnuts fall
Left unused
As ashes rain
A sky of orange
A plume of smoke
Calling friends
Are you OK?
My people safe
Their towns in flames
I breathe in
A piece of place
Something sacred
Made by fire
From trees I loved
Animals I knew
They couldn’t leave
No time to run
From my lungs
Into my blood
Part of me
A memory
My flesh now holds
What was a tree
What was a bird
What was the woods
I walk in a circle
Described again
By my shoes on soil
And my daughter’s steps
Pushing away
Fallen shells
Ashes and dust
Talking of water
We can breathe today
We can move our limbs
It is good to be
Alive right now
