When I Was<\/p>\n
When I was a bear
\nI filled the world.
\nMy paws were wide,
\nand I walked large.
\nI ate all summer
\nand slept all winter,
\ndreaming of the time<\/p>\n
when I was a dragonfly
\nand I wove the world.
\nDarting through air,
\nskimming over grass,
\nhovering on water,
\nmy compound eyes
\nembroidering my dreams of the time<\/p>\n
when I was a turtle
\nand I carried the world.
\nWalking slowly with the weight,
\nsquat body on four thick legs,
\nhard shell holding me in,
\nkeeping my dreams of the time<\/p>\n
when I was a salmon
\nand I fed the world.
\nSleek skin sliding down river throats,
\npink flesh nourishing my cousins.
\nI swam upstream,
\nwhere death took me
\nand I swallowed my dreams of the time<\/p>\n
when I was a tree
\nand I held the world.
\nRoots gripping soil,
\nbranches embracing sky,
\nmy vision
\nencompassing dreams of the time<\/p>\n
when I was a raven
\nand I sang the world.
\nSingle note struck from my throat,
\npushed into air,
\nthe sound a call to listen
\nto the unseen
\nand honor my dreams of the time<\/p>\n
when I was a bear;
\nwhen I was a dragonfly;
\nwhen I was a turtle, a salmon, a tree;
\nwhen I was a raven.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“When I Was” is reprinted from\u00a0The Journal of Mythic Arts <\/em>and Animal Life <\/em>(Green Snake Publishing<\/a>).<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Mario Milosevic’s<\/a> poems and stories have appeared in Black Warrior Review, Rattle, Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction,<\/em> and many other magazines<\/a>. His novels<\/a> include Terrastina and Mazolli: A Novel in 99-Word Episodes, Claypot Dreamstance, <\/em>and The Coma Monologues<\/em>. He has published three volumes of poetry: Animal Life,<\/a> Fantasy Life, <\/a><\/em>and Love Life.<\/em> <\/a>All his books are published by Green Snake Publishing<\/a>. He lives with his wife, writer Kim Antieau, in the Columbia River Gorge and works at the Stevenson Community Library in Stevenson, Washington.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When I Was When I was a bear I filled the world. My paws were wide, and I walked large. I ate all summer and slept all winter, dreaming of the time when I was a dragonfly and I wove … Continue reading