as we cross the mountain,  we  can  walk 
 only at night. long  ago,  someone  here 
 must've  angered the  sun, and  today it 
 still  burns us strangely. but with  the 
 sunset the  air  comes raining back down 
 and  gets  thick enough to  breathe.  it 
 carries  with  it smells from far  away, 
 colourful sparks for the  imagination, a 
 sharp contrast  for  the stale black  of 
 the night.                               
                                          
 the others  think i'm young, they  don't 
 take  me  seriously  and   i  fear  they 
 snicker  a  bit.  you  usually  get  old 
 before  you  learn the  trade enough  to 
 take  other  people. but i  do lead them 
 safely     forward,     every     night. 
                                          
 however, currently  there  seems  to  be 
 something  going on ahead. those  around 
 the   corner  have   stopped,  shouting, 
 pointing.                                
                                          
                           
                           
                           
                           
                           
                           
                           
                           
                                          
 my greatest treasure, the                
 book of stars,   is   a   combined  map, 
 calendar and timepiece as  long  as  you 
 know what year it is.  every page  is  a 
 grid  of  nine  starfields,  hand drawn, 
 below which are  written coordinates  in 
 both space  and time.  a lot  of  it  is 
 applicable  on  earth, but  not  all. it 
 hints  of  other  places  -  some  stars 
 reordered,  some   names  i  have  never 
 heard.   sometimes   the    dates    are 
 impossible.                              
                                          
 those pages  are exactly what i scramble 
 for right  now. i've  stopped breathing. 
 i  sling open  the book of  stars  a bit 
 too quick,  spilling all my notes on the 
 ground. one lands on my foot,  it  is  a 
 drawing  of a  muscle cow,  but  i could 
 care less right now.                     
                                          
 for  it seems like there's a new moon in 
 the sky.