sent to me. oddly fitting. in this time of life.

[xantus]

I dreamed
of recording sounds and words
for each letter of the alphabet,
myself directing and also
running the tape recorder,
adjusting the mic;
it was a fall day and evening,
leaves whirling in the grey light,
a campground or a farm complex,
sometimes indoors, lit by bare bulbs,
sometimes on a cement patio outside;
the men and women lined up
before the mic stood patiently
to contribute sound words,
single words, stories of the letters