Bear Shirt

War was
our first language.

When I sing
our common prayers
my body fills
with the voices
of our proclaimed heroes.

And our thunder god.

My spirit rises
on a sea of mead
and its waves
pound my skull’s shore.

A golden halo
wreaths my head
to light my eyes
and pierce
the fog of war
to illuminate
the skins
my sword
will brand red.