Spotted Bull

Astride a spotted bull I rode among
the hills and valleys, deep in green country;
with youth my measure, Spotted Bull succumbed.
The distant Dominiques, our boundary,
ran hodge-podge through the brush then disappeared.
The little dark-haired girl was not in sight
but Spotted Bull and I would persevere
and traveled full pursuit all through the night.

To distant darkened hills came morning sun;
an ochre shining diamond, nonetheless,
much needed now that Spotted Bull was done:
a man he had become, his roguishness
dissolved; awash in light, his spirit rose
above the dawn unfurled and kept me there.
          Among the rows of shopping carts she goes,
          and tall and dark and lovely her long hair.