Poetry by Jim Nasium
We Tie The Wind In A Knot
The once a year all day Hunting Feast was over now and the village slept as the elders sat in a circle around a fire on bamboo mats trying to tie the wind in a knot. Hours passed slowly as they shared gourds of chi chi and told hunting stories.
It wasn't until a few hours before dawn, when they asked me to join them, that they realized no one else could see what they were seeing, or understand what they were trying to do with their hands that were flapping hard in front of them carrying out the motions for what seemed to be tying a half hitch, or a square knot...
I sat down where they told me to and silently watched them. After awhile I was handed the gourd of chi chi and took I a long drink of the bitter brew. I finally gathered the courage to ask the brujo what they were trying to do and his answer made no sense to me; "We tie the wind in a knot" he said.
I wondered to myself exactly what they'd do with the wind once it was tied up anyhow..
The brujo stood up, walked over to where I was sitting and carefully filled a long hollow bamboo tube with a yellow powder he called yahe' and then carefully pushed the smaller end of the bamboo tube into my nose. With out warning he blew hard on his end of the bamboo tube, forcing the powder [inside the tube] up into my skull. The rush was amazing...
The elders sat silently as the Brujo danced around me in a circle chanting something or other about a safe journey.
One by one the Brujo put the hollow bamboo tube full of yellow powder up to the nose of each elder, and then he'd blow the yellow powder up in the nasal passage of each man, chant something, and dance in a circle, then he'd start over again at the next man until each man had three portions...
It wasn't too long after my third hit that I found myself trying to tie the wind in knots along with the elders, still having no idea at all exactly what I'd do with the wind once it were tied.
©2001 Jim Nasium
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