Fond du Lac, Saskatchewan

We paddled 175km over nine days in northern Saskatchewan, sharing food, laughter, mosquitoes, and tons of fun with friends to inspire the following poem 🙂

I wait on a beach in Northern Saskatchewan
for aurora borealis to arrive.
My friends, modern nomads, tuck in
to yellow, blue, orange and green domes.
Sandstone hills and evergreen trees rise
above marshy grass.
Beneath a still surface
river current slides north toward Arctic,
mirror images of its shoreline
reaching for heaven.
Night hawks shoot skyward
torpedo down
wings bugling a haunting tune.
Therma-rests rustle
mosquitoes attack my ears
the world settles into a bedtime routine.
I think about waking up the others
with bear bangers on the beach.

Thoughts of Dolomiti

As I prepare to leave on my next adventure, a canoe trip in northern Saskatchewan,  my mind drifts to Italy and the via Ferrata I experienced with my husband and friends; the inspiration for the following poem.

I spring from the blanket
eyes circle the forest
my mind reaches out to the horizon
where a distance strains
above tree tops
steel cables follow
a line
ready for the high course

Dolomiti tower before me
a north wind blows
in a rush
I drag bruised legs
over jagged dusty rocks
carabiner clicks
count the path upward

suddenly I see a raven
black wings glint as she soars
my bandana waves
I lunge to the left
in my mind
I am Icarus
on my way to the sun