Skyward

CONTRETEMPS

Though the world’s dark heart

brought me here,

where time was hiding

in the unleashed sea,

I will stay in this fragile place

of broken trees and wounded birds

that teach me patience as I watch

them fill the bared branches

like clusters of singing leaves.

I will follow

a passing flock of plovers,

who think faster than we can see

when they suddenly turn

and flash their snowy undersides

in one bright act

of collected caring consciousness.

They must have heard a warning

in the lost language

of the river wind.

But the silent merlin—

in pursuit

disarmed, confused, and angry—

cackles at his lazy gods.

I see the breath

of another god, moving

beneath still wings

of the osprey and the eagle

in flight. I see

countless angels, rising from the river

with open hands

and upturned palms

to hold the wings in place

as the animals glide over

this sanctuary

and pull the sky

back into the universe.

—Marjory Wentworth

“Fa ebeeting wha dey een wi, hunnuh kin tun Skyward an’ kno’.” (For everything that’s in us, you can turn Skyward and know.)

—Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation

The character of Lijah in this story was inspired by the Gullah tradition of the African-American oral historians (griots). The Gullah language is as rich and complex as the culture, and I was fortunate to have the guidance of Queen Quet of the Gullah/Geechee Nation in writing Lijah’s dialogue. However, I have taken the liberty of making substitutions so that the reader would more readily understand the text. Thus, while the dialogue is not pure Gullah, I've done my best to convey the unique qualities and rhythm of this significant Lowcountry language.

Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight