seeking world peace and personal peace thru poetry

29 June 2000

PAGAN FISHING

Pagan fishing means worshipping the stream, chasing
the cloulds, becoming the trout. The tear shed at sunrise
is worth more as it tracks down the cheek than all the
golden idols in the world. The puma licks its chops and
you know how it feels. When you drink water as it
melts and drips from a frozen waterfall in early spring.
you are on the verge of enlightenment. When you are so
deep in the forest that the word "lost" loses its meaning,
you are as close to God as you'll ever be. When you cut
the line with your teeth to save the fish, you are no mere
angler -- the taste of four-pound test is in your mouth,
too. These are mysteries only to those living against
nature -- the deer know all there is to know about
heaven. When the river speaks, listen or be damned.
The cracked rod doesn't lie about the size of the day's catch.