With snow falling
too much
in some regions
and in others not enough,
a question of what’s next
to
melt
from permafrost
hangs
like a verdict
not yet delivered,
also, certain doubts––related maybe,
about what’s left
to be exposed
about the trajectory
of history
if that’s what
we’re still calling it,
so now seems like as good a time as any
to pay
homage
to the iceworm,
crawling through
glacial snows
and over ice,
eating the red of
sun cups, and melting
when traces of winter
depart. These are not
to be confused
with the army project
of the Cold War, its launch
sites under Greenland ice,
not to be confused with the
great worms
of legend heard
playing
beneath the northern
lights, near
the entry point
***
Inspired by news of the Cordova Iceworm Festival, which begins today.
The U.S. army project referenced above was nicknamed Project Iceworm.
