i)
For a while he found harmony in his renewed life as the soothsayer
For a while ... yes ... but soon his desire for travel returned
Along with the visions of the eagle on the wing; soaring high above the earth
with mighty frost shattered peaks at his feet; twinkling waters miles below
The settled routine of the tribe began to form impatience in his soul
He felt trapped ... he felt rejected by Great Spirit ... he wasn’t meant to live this way
Before he wished for acceptance ... he drew to him that wish ... he knew the truth
It was a wrong move; his life as the outcast before was the right choice
But he’d been fooled into thinking his mate from before needed him.
Not long after his return and the reunions with the elders
And the oaths of allegiance made; and the sacrifices in his name,
Even she left the tribe, this time never to return ...
A stray wolf bitch in the twilight ... a deadly bite .... and she was gone
Now he cannot speak her name ... her memory to be forgotten
Her face in his dreams ignored ... to let her move on
There was sadness for him ... but only fleetingly ... he knew it was the way
The only way for he ... it was time for he to leave it all behind once more
But this time forever.
(ii)
Dawn mist still rested on the familiarity of the river’s edge when he slipped away
The guards of that quarter snoring in unnatural sleep; a potion did the trick
By the time the elder’s are made aware it will be too late ....
He will be gone ... on the wings of the eagle ... on the trail of the wolf
His shape-shifting skills better than ever.
Later in a windy glade he rests ... human once more ... spectres haunt his dreams
Restless he wakes by a half moon light and sees again the lone wolf
Piercing eyes view his soul ... he smiles ... he is not alone
With ease he makes his form elastic and shifts once more and joins her ...
He is free again ... no binding rules of the tribe ... he has forgotten them
His vision quest is alive once more ...
With the flutter of the air across his fur he crosses the plain
His mind filled with crystal clear voices ... the words of the one
The omnipresence of which he is part ... the order with which he made his pact
The part of he more he than Shi-Na-Gar the face he bears this time around
The memories of the time long before so alive now ... he cannot deny them
His mission then ... now ... his time of rest over
The tribe a discarded need forever ... this time forever
His destiny to track the road of lights for eternity until he finds his long lost home.
Matthew James 23 February 2000
