Knowledge

The serpent is eating
an autumn’s lunar
eclipse and the village
shaman stands at the ready
with his staff in hand.
The villagers cower,
and he chants the saving
songs. The songs learned
from the old shaman as a naked
boy at the knee of the wise
old man, learning the secrets
of the gods.
Now the people wait and watch,
wide-eyed as the serpent
retreats and the giant egg
in the sky is released to shine
down on the apprentice shaman.
The novice has been watching
with awe as his master shows
his command of the world.
The apprentice is no longer
afraid of the serpent as he
knows that when his time comes
he will know the right words
to save his people.
That time will come,
and the cycle will repeat.