fingerprints of prometheus

vii

My brother turns into a black stone and a white stone
A crawling white insect is his omen
My brother disappears
A white bird with blood on its beak
Shimmering white stone
flat in the palm
I am given a book
that I am not allowed to read
I am told to keep it safe
I show my brother the book
then tell him to pretend he didn't see
Earlier in the dream there was snow,
snow left on the ground,
snow falling when it should have been too warm
Children playing in water
who would become sick from the sudden cold
An old woman falls from a moving car
Her body is a pile of old clothes
My brother is an infant who speaks
and we are all afraid of him