Alice Notley

 

The Descent of Alette ["I walked into"]

'I walked into' 'the forest; ' 'for the woods were lit' 'by yellow 
street lamps' 'along various' 'dirty pathways' 'I paused a moment' 
'to absorb' 'the texture' 'of bark & needles' 'The wind carried' 
'with a pine scent' 'the river's aura—' 'delicious air' 'Then a 
figure' 'appeared before me—' 'a woman' 'in a long dress' 'standing 
featureless' 'in a dark space' ' 'Welcome,' she said,' '& stepped into' 
'the light' 'She was dark-haired' 'but very pale' 'I stared hard at her, 
realizing' 'that her flesh was' 'translucent,' '& tremulous,' 'a 
whitish gel' 'She was protoplasmic-' 'looking—' 'But rather beautiful,' 
'violet-eyed' ' 'What is this place? ' ' 'I asked her' ' 'It would be

paradise,' she said,' ' 'but, as you see,' 'it's very dark,' '& always 
dark' 'You will find that' 'those who live here' 'are changed' 
'enough' 'from creation's first intent' 'as to be deeply' 'upset... ' 
'But you must really' 'keep going now' ' ' 'Are those tents' 'over there? ' 
I asked' 'I saw small pyramids' 'at a distance' ' 'Yes, these woods are' 
'full of beings,' 'primal beings,' 'hard to see—' 'because it's' 
'always dark here' 'Most of them' 'need not concern you now' 'But 
wait here,' 'someone is coming' 'to show you your way' ' 'She stepped 
back into' 'the shadows,' 'turned & left me'