ROCK HUNTING AT HORSE HEAVEN HILLS

FAITH ALLINGTON

We come for agate

and obsidian,

the cracked fire

of opals.

We perch on slopes

where the earth splits

and coppers,

regurgitating

all manner of ore,

mouthfuls of gold dust.

The stalagmite caverns

beckon, their fluted columns

put you in mind of sentinels

or gates flung open

under the lovely dark sky

of the earth leading always

deeper inward

as if to a greater secret.

Until we see the ruby veins

at our fingertips

and though there’s every risk

of collapse, we dare each other

to take one more step

into the underworld.

Faith Allington is a writer, gardener and lover of mystery parties who resides in Seattle. Her work is forthcoming or has previously appeared in various literary journals, including Crow & Cross Keys, The Fantastic Other, The Quarter(ly), Bowery Gothic and FERAL.