A Litany for Ancestor Wisdom

In a world divorced
from knowledge that cannot be
        parsed or proved

       a world where gangs pillage
             and politicians harden lines
make us porous

so we can commune
       with cedars
                receive messages
                    from sprites
                             and saints
       and spiral like galaxies.

In a time when the old squander
and the young
       have no use for prattle, 

open us to ancestors’ wisdom
      not about how to lard
              bank accounts
                          or smash ceilings

but how to dance in evil’s shadow.

In an age of rising seas
            and cracked deserts
expand our living beyond mansions
             beyond gated pettiness. 

Quench our fears enough to share
       even with those we call
              our enemies

          a cup of tea,
          a slice of bread.