literature

Ottumwa Shaman

Deviation Actions

Daily Deviation

Daily Deviation

January 16, 2013
Ottumwa Shaman by ~MineralAccident
Featured by BeccaJS
Suggested by LiliWrites
MineralAccident's avatar
Published:
4.7K Views

Literature Text

In Iowa, weeping willows dream of
Tigers, born in pagan fog, their
Coat of stripes singing shaman
Songs; shrill symphonies of grief.
Heaven tilts, crashes, and we race
The dirt to get away. We drink the
Earth with bullets of air and grow
Dizzy, light-headed from breathing
Some far off flame. Perhaps a poet
Who braved the fog of Ottumwa, and
Caught fire. Every cowboy has his
Six chances before high noon, before
The fog forms wispy jackals to take
Them home again. Every son inherits
An empty gun, six voids to fill with
Answers, skimmed and guessed from the
Covers of books their fathers used
To read. There is no other way.
In sleeping, I have been to Iowa,
And I learned where wiccans go
To make their bed. I do not know now
If I had dreamed the weeping willow,
Or if it had bent low to dream of me.
In Iowa, there is no such truth, only
Depth, and the shaman's song of grief.
The Ottumwa shaman's song of grief.
© 2011 - 2024 MineralAccident
Comments17
Join the community to add your comment. Already a deviant? Log In
screechingbanshee's avatar
From Iowa lol still love it