Neh Tsoi
At the age of a hundred and ten
Chan Kin Viejo, Old Little Sun
Elder Prophet asked his question,
the Mayan night breathing deep around
the small Yucatan town of Naha
as we sat by his fire.
Young ones, what will you dream this night?
Neh tsoi, he said, neh tsoi, it is good.
Which moved first, your feet or the dance?
And what is it that your heartbeat answers?
The throb of the tide? The drum of thunder?
Neh tsoi, neh tsoi, he said again.
Can your metal watch tell us the time
as well as the ancient cycles of Sun,
stone calendars sown by the seasons?
Young ones, what will you dream this night?
Copyright © 2023 by Joseph Bruchac. This poem appeared in Platte Valley Review. Used with permission of the author.
Joseph Bruchac
Joseph Bruchac, a citizen and member of the Elders Council of the Nulhegan Abenaki Nation, is a writer, musician, and traditional storyteller. A graduate of Cornell University, Bruchac also attended Syracuse University, where he earned his master’s degree, and the Union Institute of Ohio, where he obtained a PhD in comparative literature.