Torch Lake

As the evening shadows lengthen
on the homestead of the sisters,
and the sounds of summer mingle
with the lapping of the waters,
then the summons to the campfire
ripples out to friends and cousins,
and the family comes together
in a circle on the sand.

In the dwindling hours of daylight
with the seagulls swooping, diving,
on the lake they call a beacon
ringed with cedar and with maple,
once again the fire is started
in the ring of stone at sundown,
where the spirit gently rises
and the water meets the land.