Red Osier Spiders

HEATHER CAHOON    AFTER LORCA


Vertical Divider
The color of cut flesh, red osier
dogwood spires sever
the white snow alongside
the narrow canal roads that crawl
through Jocko Canyon. These
canals were built by suyuyapi
one hundred years ago in the name
of privilege, of advancing the interests
of yeomen farmers, foreigners who
imported inside seed bags and bibles
their unconscious framework(s)
for viewing all things.
The second past dusk, my smallest
son sees a giant spiny spider
without eyes or a face walking
across the airspace in my bedroom.




N O T E :

suyuyapi = white people / non-Indians




HEATHER CAHOON grew up in St. Ignatius, Montana, on the Flathead Indian Reservation, where she is enrolled Pend d’ Oreille. She holds an MFA in Poetry from the University of Montana and was the recipient of the 2000 Richard Hugo Memorial Scholarship and the 2005 Merriam Frontier Award for publication of her book, Elk Thirst. She also holds an interdisciplinary PhD in history, anthropology, and Native American Studies. Her writing has appeared in numerous national and international publications. She lives in Missoula, Montana, with her husband and sons and teaches Native studies and poetry at the University of Montana.