plain of jars (site 1), xieng khouang province

and the gods seemed too giving
- fill their cups to brim -
halfway to child-birth
leading
two people to ask one and each
to coupling
recouping the slate
state of the art
make one afraid of the mass
to undergo a rite
of orgy passage.

the sky seemed cooperative at first, overcast but non-drizzling. the ground was still wet, therefore, muddy in a slippery kind of way. hence, my guide repeated, "careful, slippery. you know what i me
an? slippery? careful, slippery." after a few minutes, the clouds doused the field with a peck-ful, again, filling the half-filled stone jars scattered across the field with more water.