Only now can you walk a roadinto distant country, past a shrinecarved into the face of a mountain,above a forest of alpine green.Abandon this kitchen, this chair,the rules you taped to the mirrorin the hall all those years ago.Leave last night’s wine glassin the sink and start walking.
Find a haystack to sleep onfor the night, and in the morningcut a staff to match your stepand fit your hand. Let a childalong the road make you a hatof woven grass. Leave the mail,the shoes in the hall, the mysteriesof plumbing. Walk to the nearest hillsand find a loose horse to follow.
Walk so far from the mirroron the wall that you forgetthe color of your hair,the look in your eyes,the words of yesterdaystuck to the glass.
Image: Road in Häme (A Hot Summer Day), Werner Holmberg, 1860, oil on canvas, on display at Ateneum Art Museum