written by Marini Barika Facey
Mahogany faces are painted with spellbinding colors
Embers are taken from flames and tribes are given names
Faces and bodies are carved and crimson runs down scars
Bamboo rattles, drums pound, and unearth the ground
Voices chant and wake the silence and bury violence
Melted gold is stirred and brilliant vermilion is crushed
Fabric and cloth are tossed into colorful dyes and pressed
Radiance and wisdom brightly shine between eyebrows
Bracelets wildly shake on henna painted feet and hands
Vows tied to a fast, let eyes gaze at the moon through mesh
Branches sprinkle water across the forehead and chest
Oil flows and rushes down the hair, head, and neck
Wine is poured out onto the ground as a libation
Dream catchers trap evil in a web when hung overhead
Heaven opens and that which is sacred rains down on earth