ODE TO COLUMBIA, THE RIVER

Laughing tongue between layers of stained teeth,
Against you, Gifford's bristling green cheeks
milk arctic tears down the arroyos
of dark peaks;

Little sister of Canada's South,
grown big
Tossing whitecaps at Astoria's mouth
"Come in!, Come in!"

Silken curves, Chinook road
belted by damns and twisting 
against radioactive wounds—

carrier of men, 
sky's message-wearer,

bearer of tides,
princess with silver hair

what are you if not a place?
and if not a place, a being?

what are you if not a gorge passageway canyon corral trough swim bathtub cold drink—
splintered shard from the fractal thing—
figure cutting starlit,
coming always between

Columbia, O! Columbia!

haven for renegades, waterer of dreams, deep mover
Beautiful, beautiful, beauty queen,

Columbia!

Forever bound, forever free.