In Wisconsin, I was a volunteer for Archeological Rescue Inc. Archaeology brings people together. This was published in Tales of the Unanticipated, issue 16, May 1996.

Look. I can see her hands
on the rippled edge of a pot
over here. This one:
“Oneota Indians, 1000-1500 A.D.”
They lived here,
on this thumb of land
in a great lake, it says.
I make that rippled edge
on pie crusts, pinch
with my thumb and first two fingers
like this, all the way around,
my hands dusty with flour,
hers smeared with red clay.
Inside we put
sweetened squash or
stewed meat or
juicy summer berries.
See, there is a thumb print.
If I could reach inside the glass
my thumb would fit in that print
and I could hold her hand.
We could swap recipes and laugh
like living neighbors.