pick a river
stick with its current
long enough to know

how it mouths off
where it might come undammed

know its fish / its depth
its bridges / its tragedies
of contamination / comebacks

involving kayaks and sculls
white water rafts and riparian buffers

learn how to pronounce
its non-Anglicized Native name

what it means to be
just passing through
where there are forks

silk and steel / all that doesn’t
take root in a mere six months