What We Notice, What We Miss

What We Notice, What We Miss


Sixty-seven beer bottles hidden beneath the bed
of the departed houseguest who pretended to be sober.

The fence and what is not
the fence.

In 1976, four bald eagles built nests on the power towers
above the dam.
In 1977, they left. In 1994, they returned and built again.

The mirror that hung in the hallway for twenty years
now hangs in the bedroom.

During the powwow, the fancydancers.
Before the powwow, the grandmothers gathering feathers.

The pain of an arm broken in childhood
seconds after we have broken the other arm as an adult.

The ant
carrying God on its shoulders.


Sherman Alexie.........from The Summer of Black Widows