In Memory of Jim Harrison

We bring the argument;
Pulled up from stubborn ash,
Rendered fully into flesh,
Flesh unto flesh,
Solid, warm, burning,
Tearing through the mesh
Refinement sends,
Made up of roots and coal,
Hard and hot;
The thingness of the soul.

To mediate the space:
The tugging trout,
The bear's black
Inquisitive nose,
The scent of cork
Purple with age,
Rosemary, sage,
The clang of kitchen things,
The beating of the owl's
Shadow enshrouded wings,
Pheasant, woodcock,
The robin's eggs,
The girl at the drive-in:
Her fine brown legs

In all this, oddly,
Peace;
The way out;
Or, perhaps, in;
Still presence
In the crazy fires
Of appetite;
All dreams revealed
In each wild part--
The spinning compass
Of the human heart