We are a band of brothers,
a fleet of sisters and mothers,
fellow-travellers into the dense
thicket of lakes and streams,
portages and places we will visit.
We live on the tide of wandered imaginings.
We wait and wrestle with uncertain weather,
our eyes always trained to an indifferent sky.
We gather our purchases,
give a pat to our canoe,
ground our packs in open ports
and fly towards the first carry.
Eager to be off,
Ready to separate
from the accustomed world
to the reckless, free-flight instigations
of nature.
There is our healer.
There is our dutiful friend.
There is the medicinal we require
from the fast flurry, from the
dour and demanding clan.
We leave our cars behind,
call to the others,
laugh with serious purpose,
watch for our compasses
to take us down the lake,
to aim us towards our first liberation.
From the book Nature's Poetry of Life: Who's Watching Who? Available at Amazon or at local Grand Marais bookstores.