January Oracle (edit)

[brynmawr1]

January Oracle

I throw my wheat pennies
calculate my mortal future in broken
or unbroken lines.

I find myself in a ravine.
I must follow it to the end,
like a stream, filling each ragged hole
so I can move on.

I have no map
only the I Ching
to withstand the delusions,
the jagged walls of this path.

Beyond I traverse a meadow
where dragons have fought.
I step over the splashes
of yellow and black blood.

I close the book. I’m  left standing
on the shore of a lake,
before a mountain’s struggle with heaven,
and the question of the next second.

Waiting to See the Specialist

Conversational zen
is what I need to get through
this ravine, enough magic
to follow it to the end
a stream, filling each ragged hole
so I can move on.

I have no map
only the I Ching
to withstand the delusions
the jagged walls of this path.

I throw my wheat pennies
calculate my mortal future in broken
or unbroken lines.

The Ching never fails me 
as I traverse a meadow
where dragons have fought.
I step over the splashes
of yellow and black blood

into a time of waiting
waiting for the approach of an end
and a way forward
past the merciless lights 
of the specialist’s eyes.

HI TqB,
Sorry, I have been meaning to stop by for some time but haven't. For some reason the formatting on this computer (I'm not home) is wonky so I can't provide in line comments at this time. But I will! I can say that I liked the original in the context of using the I Ching to navigate something scary and too commonplace for a lot of people. Your more focused revision also works but might be harder for people to relate too. I will add more later.
Bryn