She walks barefoot in the wilderness

earth cloying under her feet.

Between the stars and the stones

she coaxes medicines from roots and bark;

tells the spell-stories of fern and fir

all that is fair. The starling settles

on her fingertips.

In whispers, she shares ancient secrets

where shadows dance and the old ones sleep.

The starling listens, its eyes aglow

to the moon’s mysteries, and how the rivers flow.

Bird and woman become a symphony of the wild

dance of the free.