WARNING: Do not remove this notice under penalty of awe

 

WARNING: Do not remove this notice
under penalty of awe

The wood for this cradle
grew in a forest that may contain nuts.
And fuzzy caterpillars.
For sure spiders and skunks.
Once we saw a puma.
All efforts have been made to exclude
from this package any nuts, skunks, pumas
but — just in case — open with caution.

The fragrance of these cedar boards
with lingering motes of sawdust
may cause mind-altering effects
such as peacefulness, a holy spirit,
or euphoria not unlike, we hope, the spark
that made this cradle necessary.
Inhale responsibly.

The planks for this cradle
come from trees that beheld
centuries of natural history — the owl,
the bear, the Sasquatch — cycles of the hunt,
of courtship, betrayal, magic, plunder.
Learn from this lumber. Embrace myth.
Guide the story unfolding,
the wonder of this cradle,
this child.

……

From my book Foggy Dog
First published in Allegro—thank you editor Sally Long