A Love Letter to Taos, by Irene Loy
A wagon wheel broke
Over a hundred years ago
And a magnet formed at the base of Taos
Attracting a new type of artist to the area
Black sheep of their families, transplants
-Who belong almost nowhere but in that valley
Under the careful watch of Taos Mountain
Orbiting small circles in a large universe.
You yourselves have become magnets,
I am moved back to so many of you.
I’ve had the pleasure of reading your memoirs
Making theatre, playing improv games with you
Working alongside you, co-conspiring
Having conversations that shifted my soul.
Taos community, you are bigger than the sum of your parts
And on your own clocks.
Lost or found, you are a collection of wily,resourceful spirits
In an otherwise unyielding place
Each one of you a resplendent, diamond sun
In a universe big enough to hold that many suns.
I wish money wasn't a thing
And the need to exchange our time and energy for it.
Then we could all retire there, at whatever age
Start communes, barter trade, make musicBend the arc of time to our internal clocks.I immediately want to drive right back.
I wish I could be there for what you do next.
I wish I could do what?s next for me there.Break some wagon wheel
And start a revolution -
The mountain didn't kick me out,
It asked me kindly to leaveAnd upon my leaving I sayGlory, glory, glory:
No land like Taos
No people like you
No time like that
In the known universe.
Email: ireneloytaos@gmail.com
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