Medicine Gathering, Saugeen First Nation, Autumn 2009
you’ve come for cedar on a day
discharging leaves like debts.
bundled and dropped by the road,
the limp boughs are heady
above the cigarettes and sweat.
this, you say, is healthy, is health:
a scrip dispensed in saw cuts,
a tailgate full of remedies.
there’s no reading to defend,
no parsing of this project down to fable.
just as well. i tire of stories.
best that apples rot as windfall,
and the panicked slips of rattling tails
be a simple caution.
best that burning branches
cancel obligation.
~ Richard-Yves Sitoski
“I’m an Owen Sound, Ontario based social activist, writer, and, as DeMentos, spoken-word artist. I’ve written academic articles and art reviews, have published fiction in Grimm Magazine, and am a frequent contributor at local readings and arts events.”
You honour my heritage with your words. You honour my heart with your presence in my life.
Susanna, I appreciate that very much.
Thanks for explaining to me, Richard. I love the smell of burning cedar and appreciate your heartfelt emotion. Skillfully written.
Thank you, Karen.