48. Kelo

a word from the language and you hit a snag

dead tree standing

take a bowl
of words from the table
take the smallest
bowl and move it
off the table spill
the words
from the bowl
and fill it
again with watery
words and
then begin

the tree is birch
the vihta is life
the whisk is birch
the vihta is birch
the whisk is water
the sauna is life

red flames in the sauna
ladleful of water
and steam will come
to take your breath
air too hot too moist
to breathe

I am the saunamajuri
and keep the fire going
keep the fire hot

the sauna
’s heat the sauna
’s hot we sweat
out what
we ought

the difference is
between
the steam against
our skin and
the cool evening air

sauna is our way
to feel the earth
the body our
bodies and the body
of the earth
grassy beneath
our feet

outside and
steam rises
from skin the night
never much dark
in summer

only our dark
pupils allow
us to see
the night
its own giant
pupil turned
back at us

the vihta is life
and we hit ourselves
with its green leaves
until we smell
of the warm live earth
and trees with
young green leaves

when we stand
we stand
suddenly still
kelo
snag
dead standing tree

energy drained
from
muscle from
bones
so it is that
we are re
juvenated
that we are
newborn

into the green-
black night