[Thespiritexpress] Rattlesnake poem

[Riantee Rand]

The Rattlesnake - From Apoala Mexico - To Tatyana
 
My sunned body eases into indolence,
I give thanks for all the gifts it granted me.
 
Yes, body, 
after allowing  me to try calls, shrieks, grunts and babbles,
all sounds my tongue could handle,
you taught me to articulate my first human words,
you taught me to stand up from the animal stance
and walk like a grown-up on two yet unstable legs,
you gifted me with the sense of smell to bask in fragrance
of sight to capture every small display of nature, 
of taste that transforms every morsel into a delectable nectar  
of hearing to catch the sounds of life resonating all around
and proclaiming la joie de vivre.
Thank you my mortal coil for all of it. 
 
This evening, instead of an arduous sunset hike with family
I’ll recline on the flagstones that absorbed the warmth of the day
and are gently releasing it in the twilight.
We’ll lie there you and me,
            dreaming up abundance for all beings,
extracting the immense tenderness in all things. 
 
Thus we dreamt together my body and me
until a voice coming from the returned hikers jolted us out of our reverie:
Mama, you are lying right next to a rattlesnake!
And there it was, secreted in the dusk,
a young rattle curled up a few feet from me
peacefully enjoying the balminess of the evening, 
dreaming along with me.
 
This story has a sad ending.
To protect other cabin dwellers
my daughter denounced the snake to the tribal custodian
who hunted the young rattle and killed it in the morning.
 
For months I mourned that little reptile, 
full of remorse and regrets for a most tender friend I had betrayed,
until one day 
I came to know that the creature was sent to teach me 
how to love unreservedly in the acceptance of what is.
 
And I still carry in the most sacred space 
the dreamtime rattle of the tribe:
Everything is totally significant 
and
absolutely unimportant. . .


> On Jun 12, 2024, at 07:38, balldinger <balldinger at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Hey Riantee, 
> 
> Can you post your Rattlesnake poem on the Spirit Express? I really enjoyed it and would love to read it.
> 
> Thanks! 
> 
> ~ Ed
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
> 

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