I.
Everyone said water was our
friend. Bathe. Cleanse. Drink.
Birth. But none told us that water
thirsts, too.

II.
Out and about in the woods
with sparse water to nourish
tongues and trunks
things continue to strive -
in absentia?

III.
Articles of libation are
rejected. No one knows why.
Is it because they are cheap or
a counterfeit? Perhaps it’s because the
accompanying recitation is rendered
in an unknown accent?

IV.
Land meets water. Water thirsts:
not of land but of things that
lurk behind the shadow of those
that are still asleep. Those that
are awake (or woke) must pay their
debts to water before it becomes a
barren land.

V.
Water must have enemies. For who
else would ensure that none speak
evil of the dead upon its demise?