YOU SHOULD KNOW

You should know how
to read sign, find water,
follow tracks and stars
and tell about it—how
to start a fire in the rain
skin a rabbit, cook the meat
and pick your teeth with a bone.

You should know how
to make the mundane rich
with detail and symbolism,
start your own religion, quietly—
to look through the eyes
of animals, trees and birds
to see yourself as common.

You should know how
to draw lines, share space
and learn to help.
You should know how
to create the kind of joy
you cannot buy
with cash or credit.