Iris Jamahl Dunkle (b.1974)

How to Cope in a New Landscape 

First, learn the promise of water. Listen
to the wind, believe what it will carry.

Get a shovel, dig. Under every
town there is a secret room no one talks about.

Sometimes, this room is spotless. But sometimes, 
it contains a small, forgotten child.

Work tirelessly to retrieve the child
even if no one will confirm that she exists.

Second, learn to forget the press of fog,
the sharp taste of salt in the air. Forget

the landscape you’ve stitched into your skin. Wash
yourself in the new air—no matter how cold. 

Third, step off of the crumbling asphalt
Onto the spongy earth. Find acceptance

in what will rebuild each Spring. No matter where
You end up, there will be birds, some unknown. 

Identify them. Follow their jagged
ascent. Identify trees and common 

plants and animals. Don’t infer meaning
from names alone. Look deep into the woods

until you see what was unseen. Soon a
song will rise in your throat.