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The Power of Prayer

Valerie, I suppose you are still practicing
Jumping in and out of a lasso.
I know you took up this activity
After a visit to the West a few years ago.
Do you still wear the white felt cowboy hat,
The white silk shirt, and snakeskin boots.
I still have the sprig of tumbleweed you mailed.
You said tumbleweed was your biography.
Well, I've kept a part of you,
If the part is only symbolic.
I do miss you.  I spent most of the summer
Watching the tides.  When the waves flow in,
The coquinas stick out white forked tongues;
But when the waves recede, the coquinas close their shells.
I've dedicated my life to these observations.
But due to heavy summer rains, I stay in most of the time.
Inside, I pray.  You know, I'm not religious.
I don't believe in prayer, but I pray on these rainy days,
For there isn't  much else to do since you went away.