I Met An Indian Yesterday

(dedicated to my fiancee Courtney Silverman)

I met an Indian yesterday:
he was about my age
with wild eyes devoid of rage

I met an Indian yesterday:
his hair was long, black
and as shiny as the beak of a raven,
he wore worn, neatly beaded moccasins

I met an Indian yesterday;
he sat on a great backpack
with water bottles and blankets,
all protected by a tiny dreamcatcher

I met an Indian yesterday
sitting outside a Burger King;
I let him use my cell phone
to call his girlfriend for a ride

I met an Indian yesterday:
not a modoc or a klamath or any local tribe,
but a plains breed like sioux or commanche

I met an Indian yesterday,
just off the highway
by the college where Professor Luppi
and I once debated Custer's last stand;
he was entirely right

I met an Indian yesterday;
he offered me a few Sacagawea dollars;
I insisted on trading them for Washingtons
his girlfriend came in a Ford explorer,
Courtney and she talked about the weather

I met an Indian yesterday;
we smoked from a buffalo bone peace pipe
and followed them out of the city
toward a free American sun...
but only in my imagination