Christine Reding
November aptly named for beavers lodging for winter
Heating rocks wrapped in leather skins for warming
Daily provisions being secured are decreasingly thinner
Existing on berries, butternuts, acorns, walnuts forming
A rich surplus of earth’s maple syrup tapped and dripping
Hunting with banner stones weighted when thrusting a spear
Soapstone nets sink below the surface capturing elusive fish
Snowshoeing 50 miles per day to ensnare unsuspecting rabbits and deer
Smearing bodies of animal fat and oil, escaping the frigid abyss
Wrapped in caribou fur with double insulation shedding water and snow
Existing frigid elements wandering and becoming lost
Walking aimlessly self-guided to ascribe food on an empty plateau
Habitation with the cold moon that produces the November frost