The Valley

[Verse 1]
I stood again long wanderer, child
Where the valley opened wide
The forest veil in serenade
As inside a columned room

[Bridge]
They stood apart and open:
Linden, poplar, beech
The fern-cooled floor grew rich with trees
At rest among them I could see

[Verse 2]
That something's changed, in them or me
Tall guardians of time
As deeply furrowed as a brow
Skin fluted, vertical, lined

[Chorus]
In earth, in blood, in mind
The dead and living into each other pass

[Verse 3]
The wind will sway and sing these trees
But it could throw me off my feet
I gaze up through these opened crowns
Into the ageless embrace

[Chorus]
In earth, in blood, in mind
The dead and living into each other pass