SHAPESHIFTING
(Magic 1)
11 he human bodys precisely our capciy For metamorpho-
| gs Weistakenly think of our Hesh 25 fixed an fie
JL. orm, a neatly bounded package of muscle and bone and
ore else, with blood surging its looping boulevards and
ipmaya Bur even the most carorypondeting ofthe body's ma
Id entanglemonts-its erotic draw toward othe bodies
snecsoane neptaton with that gander eros we call 0
{dependence upon elonursts no just to quench i thst De
arte and fet dhe vaso plants that it plucks, chomps and
canons it inbrplio with those very plans and afew anita
‘Fring mount fom tem fo ts msc, ki and Senses
rere basing tha chomped matter back 0 the word a com
perme mig f ne were fag eased ro now che sl
wes bedazlement by biedong is PEs"
i a ing etnes ing water and ehrough hs. te mate
a ne eiaaon ics to make evden th che body #
ecto eu han areal when the diverse etre ad
eae dese op with one another. The ody lass
arora oars clicking hes nd cect ile
Te se ong ences neg. and metnorgho
sal ont enploedsome What ur body ile and
\IE SOSS=SWSOFO
‘efrmed ait moves hah differen lds this ie
bch fay ind of pe er seaenerbce
san oh ich gpa nd i ih he moc
seleandsctiment. The bly in pol plas wanda
shughthe gr valjand lin of theca en ean
core the sme waters ins hates se
wer pcs is hry cond ad Seria ey at
father aes held hoagh which the wold experts
ive a teling doorway chug whch smd nee of the
aah ae always fing Sometines the mes ees mote
oth trol changed Sometime ys eso
bythe page: And someting thy echo te Jory ale
Dept te unending tempo dein an dingo he by
sa Sccminte objet he motor chat oo est
tak ts ete n the mn dps coments ter ten
xteting ones fom the may ck of amp. le
caught pin thee area be of heey Late ce
‘eae eco i the peu cape len he inpcon
he the epaciy for metmrgs a ently exo ae
neni ol t pecs per delng in ave oss
alow mete prviea few ry mundane amples dew ft a
ondary fem Non Aer, before lag up one apn te
‘matters that unfolded daring my sojourn inthe high
= ing my ej he high valleys of
“The modem wold of commerce and entrain enpgc
ou corpora cetiiy nails Twa nye os
hen It became ara thelr nce tere
fimsatihe lol cintahal oon yong Lam non eeceg
hc tothe ovis tance weal fain we mabaed ens
sh big sen Butt the uncanny ny that cn flee ld
aeghatigul enter into my Bloodstream, ikea con Sam
sng ein cdo fhe eel ena
‘verng én shifty dng hoe
the moment As apr teen ae MA
‘nino members pated a eee HONE
sion, James
Spine
evra ae
ses then dol aac ese
tie
ca Ts S087
Se windows of thar ear. no"
vo barading beyond the
pected leap to the ede oft
Sak ams
hese intinctve behavior, bur simply BESAME SNK
se let ree
‘would finally dissipate, the poset of eof
etna
a eee ait
cen SG ce eo
sin of i en era
Sah ese el ad el
placing carly cs ke se dispose unt lu mae
cating Ee ect al struck a Tadierus anacheonsO
‘wheezing by ond med in rom another planet. The panern
irom the side
rained o foracveral days
Prato int and maine
\.Bu weten eld aot een lope gic capably
for metamorphous tht became evden ony wht I tak apt
cz of wen It isa ype of tansmutaton wel koe, Pa
ges. many wrieraltiough precios fe posable how
Siar ths phenomenonsealy shows owen for
ingorersome esl senda ft coupe sno lagi
in hopes that the gh read it Whenever onc a hem sobre
sen mentions (on the phone perhaps) tha she nm pes
ite pce, then—at tht morent nt cru age oe a
thetet When lance tiny copy those ages Tata ee
saps eon ered sre drama some ony alg la
the dade thing Bat woking coer pps tae
bree words ve writen esl same a stor ofc
‘or and he punctation mars borwen them et he Wie
thing eats diferent Probl 1 bad seen befrete ow
lrg apsrenc whl rev antl cps eo ed
themes gleaming is halt hidden gms among the changed
sg of he fext For mow rexting ae wet with very a
fecat fom my own: My collage hs not xenclcf ne bck 0
teller action a draft Inall lino! shea jer
ihe wading tedoess mat | do aun nedwbnoishe
kes or depses he hing ony hare orang Tt kn
se. lone sis wo atts deal rce encour
forme with what Ive writen Andi earn tha sar Bonde
reading then sh tex wl ustorm se gen
‘Once covered this shipesiingplorphoscpaily
inmyriten vor, rene htt nator Fb eee
send if cold effet thee tansformations on yom oe
sending ops out to be viewed by agonal fang
the Fine ds of sbsoqen aries, Tune eal shoe
from dhe imagined pengetne of vain ellags Bor nk
sr. Ivassinply unable cijre ony ow ea
inthe extra eof hat Hen Ory rhonee ea
other dish mesamorphosseceur
«
Shapeshing 288
g of thee printed
our perusing ne
Feng teers. OE
So rg hm
Oe ony east
i es pa =
Se at sows a fen en
‘ramp, fst became aware of my unsettling Pr Pe feos
evenly ‘ake on the accent of whor ca 1 res baa
Whenever Twas om the tclephone sy howe era
ogee pono org om ro
RSL Isc seeing 2 Ruin nme
in ain were geviulsing wy Bye ot ace
tie phone ‘safe ber that Iwas t al
Soma Whos oncom hoes a
SC pin sah
Sy catenton, found ace vocal ection
oo sn tl kia
Bar in mpl sroclivity was instinct eas
Bae grea efor that 1 ws able 10 nt
i edd yreunately, such
sno rec eel
etre
eeeee sef wth
eee caer ice had rendered me so darn
re ame
il Pom Ba fed me to this od
spineless Tent discoveries Fall recone eee
“Tao subse pe first happened when, a5 ait oad
proclivity of min ng more widely inrsaeting mT ar
Con a fn Ne Aen 0
seo fom tig me sone ah Se
taco
7 OY
haw ater authors
is ikly‘to communicate with than most of my comrades. Tis was not
_merely because ry accent would shift na way that made my oie
‘wir to understand, but also because whenever I fund myelin
ems wey diem pan forms of sentient
clones er gee ie
1 simply ad re not acknowledged there as sentient
and pent in ada and tal
che apa int
tena
a weNE -'SC*C DI
stent pan eee esd pg
ita able
[oto ofthe via, wing anova
human settlement and the wide yf =i
Sor lente pnw ma pach
fem fed a eye
bean ner dred ns rn
‘membrane actos whic
ree hich nourishment flowed steady in both
«
Sonam
rs jut sich pen ks
distance from other nee een empathic given to living ata
other twolegges soe
cea gnnd co nr ay
any ee-mel vers ad th thon ncn te oes
soon clouds creeping
He suck meses te valley ke lacie in revere
inelig a cool nd dae
hus sci beloreeachdask
Shaping
ov would lib up here to immerse in
fe Theee were ote fais 0
Som ined, al cern many are evestere
ut Sonam was an especialy close aly and appeenice, of Raven.
Intbshe ssi his maternal grandaer—that cpt
mabe od man whom Ta watched endlesly ficking pret
eats inthe core ofthe fist Sherpa ouscold seen
Inthe days ater the though sharing anaformation 1
gored wth ose the lt chapter, when fw Sonam em
Tiron ad back gain, Iva able vo pice ogeter some eens
Font supecte that remarkable feat was accomplished. For
nly afer tat event did I Become avare of how throhly
Sonam give himfr the patent observation of those lack
feathered creatures, gazing ently a a group of eens perched
tnd aging clster of tow toes o¢ ata sng dark bid stand
ing ons nat rock Before the eanformain, hd sometines
treo him fo bei when he was iting fing the soe