In the night sky, Arabs see al\u2019awa\u2019id,<\/p>\n
the Mother Camels, a pattern of stars<\/p>\n
that seem to gather around a calf<\/p>\n
and protect her from hyenas.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In the life before this one, daughter,<\/p>\n
I might have carried you for just over a year,<\/p>\n
and delivered you to your first slow,<\/p>\n
searing desert breaths.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The camel mare is the only mammal<\/p>\n
who does not clean her infant<\/p>\n
after birth, nor bite through the umbilical cord.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Another cord binds me to you;<\/p>\n
it runs from brainstem<\/p>\n
to lumbar region, with nerve roots,<\/p>\n
dorsal roots, ventral roots,<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
the peripheral butterfly columns,<\/p>\n
and the cauda equine (horse\u2019s tail),<\/p>\n
motor supply for the perineum<\/p>\n
that brought you into light in late<\/p>\n
September, a desert sunflower,<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
your eyes dolly-blue, to gift me<\/p>\n
my happiest autumn.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A calf is born with eyes open.<\/p>\n
Did you know camels always face the sun?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Their lovely long eyelashes<\/p>\n
and their tears protect their eyes<\/p>\n
from sand and grit and blindness.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
We were nomads, in that other life;<\/p>\n
maybe that is why I do not see you<\/p>\n
as much as I would like, but we are bound<\/p>\n
to each other nonetheless.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
You\u2019ll find me waiting in al\u2019awa\u2019id<\/p>\n
even at the dawn of my next life.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In the life before this one, daughter . . .<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":2836,"template":"","categories":[9,49,119],"tags":[6,208,617,618,619],"class_list":["post-2835","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aquifer","category-literary-features","category-poetry","tag-aquifer-the-florida-review-online","tag-motherhood","tag-nomads","tag-tamara-miles","tag-the-mother-camels"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n