Head high or more,
three or four inches wide at its top
to steady the hiker,
the stalk should converge downward
to spear sharpness,
yet thick enough to leave lines
back to trail head
where the hiker began,
where he’ll leave
that twisted artifact
for another fist to lift tomorrow
or years from now,
to curl a grip and test its strength
stabbing through snow crust
deep enough to find frozen ground
until an elbow stops it, until a head
snaps upright.