I
Sun paints clouds blue red
Against skies filled with diamonds
Leaves skid over frost
Down past the left bank
River sloshes into night
Lips smooth as mirrors
Catfish in dark depths
Prowl for creatures legged and finned
Cloud wafts into night
II
Evening red river
Mirror smooth, artery strong
Swallows like skipped stones
Trout rings glide ashore
Around boots wet and cold
Lightning in the night
Herons stand on stumps
Silent, primordial, cocked
Frogs eye bottle flies
III
Tangles of children
Scaring each other with myths
Wind plays the rushes
Through shocks of cattail
Snakes slither into bright daylight
Heron eye turns skyward
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