Suspended in this reflective bardo
between the sorrows of loneliness and error
and the joyful weeping of full-hearted prayers
in gratitude to the overwhelming beauty of this world

that rattlesnake coiled in my soul’s deep womb

stirs

rustling with the sound of cottonwood leaves
and the diamond bright sharpness of pure mountain rivers
red ochre and bone ivory scales
scalloping through dreamtime
and the star-scudded firmament
to shake loose and slough off
these old worn-out frames and clothes
piling up around my feet

always,
this struggle,
to stop

wanting