A poem by Dick Hugo
If underwater and glowing, a red stone
is always good luck. Fish it out, even
if you must wade and wet your good shoes.
It will dry flat red like a new potato.
You should rub it and remember the way
it sparkles underwater, like a red haired woman
curving troutlike through moss.
A red stone will get you through divorce, rage,
sudden attacks of poison and certain diseses
like ringworm or gout. A red stone will not
reverse Alzen-Heimer's disease, or get you past
cancer of the colon. Use it for what it can do.
When it has done its work, return it softly
where you found it, and let your wet feet
sting a moment in the foam's white chill.
-Richard Hugo
