From the beginning, they must have been miles ahead of the men,
fleet as fawns, nimbly evading those heavy hulks lumbering after
giving apelike yells to establish mastery,
their bellies stuffed with animal fat, their lungs caked with chewing tobacco.
The escaping female swung up into trees, while her pursuer
broke the branch and toppled into the briars. It is easy to see
why goddesses preceded gods. The female wit was sharper.
God is a girl, they intoned, and if you don’t believe us, no soup
tonight.
The males howled when blood ran from a cut;
the women could bleed mysteriously and feel no pain.
From the place of blood came new beings, small creations of great interest.
The men were always fooling around this secret entrance, exit.