SHAMAN’S HEART
Two centuries back I look down at legs
covered with buckskin white as whitest sand
In the valley below are the tepees
I go to my home
my wife rises to greet me
I speak her name
like water laughing over small stones
Feel full and more with a love for her
as warm as the sumer dawn
strong as my manhood rising
I am a chief and the son of a chief
not brave enough to deny
the life of a brave
Though Shaman at heart
not Shaman enough to break
the heart or the will of my father
I hang by my flesh at a sundance
and lead the young men to war
Say goodbye to my wife and babe in her arms
ride off to the folly of a raid with no cause
As spirit rises from body
my enemies honour my courage
cut my heart from my chest and eat it
Neither friend – nor foe – nor father know
it is not the heart of a brave