i was brought onto earth on turtle island

made contact with the soil

with the water that gives me life

 

the watersheds of the

susquehanna siskëwahane

delaware lenapewihittuk

and hudson muhheakantuck, shatemuc

of which i am familiar

 

the ominous white tail deer

cunning baby fox

succulent catfish

impervious ticks

 

this is the land of the Lenape

an assemblage of nations of which are no more

who stewarded the land with intention

not to mention

being one of the land

not one who ‘owns’

 

who is left standing on the land

an occupying army

for which barbarism is honorific

for which extraction is paramount

who stands to be a victim of its own victory

 

the land is wise

and sends messages of unbalance

that cannot be ignored as malice

poured into the vessel of time

 

let a reckoning

a requiem

come

 

let reality become undone

and become one with the land

like a call and response

again

and forever more.