unto the hills

LeConte ’10

our overnight on the mountain becomes quite an expedition:
places allocated, monies gathered, lodging figured,
all figured & refigured as fate rolls the dice,
food for before, during, and after
planned, prepared, frozen to wait,
last-minute changes to the group
as a back rebels, a new job demands, a parent needs,

two days ago a storm washed over us here at the base of the mountain
with lightning & hail & rain,
a frenetic scurrying-around by the storm
as if to prepare stream and wood for the hike,

items on our lists increasingly checked-off,
no one else is here yet
and I feel an expectant calm,
easily ready to flurry into anxiousness as need arises,

in this interim for me
I imagine the bustle of house after house
as cousins & friends & children & grandchildren
whirl into action with their own checklists of things to get ready,
of packing and scurrying,
as car and plane will soon serve to work together
to gather our self-made clan for our pilgrimage up our mountain,

and we will hope for whatever revelations can come our way
as we lift up our bodies and our spirits unto the hills.

by Henry Walker
July 28, ’10