the sign leading to the beach parking lot
reads, "lot full"
this late november day
when only people
walking their dogs
watching the sunset
or hiding out briefly
visit these shores
it's thanksgiving
the national day of mourning
for indigenous peoples
a day when high school football is played
across our land
one team victorious
the other defeated
the season over
thanksgiving turkey
waiting on the table
i watch a butcher at work
sharpening knives
turning the front left shoulder
of an immense cow
into pot roasts
he is so deft
with his knives
knows the anatomy of this creature
far better
than perhaps any other human
on the planet
makes knots and lassos of string
to bind flesh
neat, clean, meticulous
and perhaps most striking of all
in a good mood somehow
rarer than sinew
rarer than being able to tolerate
the amount of butchery
we turn our eyes away from routinely