Turtle

does not lie flat
on its back or smashed even
against the shoulder
of highway, route 5,
but its shell
rocks gently, like a cradle
relieving the suffering
of its death, as traffic
sweeps by at 60 mph.

Hodenosaunee believe
that life began
on the turtle's back,
the earth itself was formed
from the shell covering it.

Nothing covers this loss,
turtle flipped over
like her people,
uprooted
from the stability
of their land.

Turtle rocks silently
with the gust
of each passing vehicle
of modernization.