Who will carry
the weight of the forest
when all the trees are gone,
the branches once laden
with winter darkness
and heavy rain;
who will make the music
of the river
or tell the stories
of stones
face up
in melted snow;
the weight, the music,
the stories so old and quiet,
there is no other like the land;
her once ardent lover
must awaken,
to dance once more
within her arms
and learn again
to carry
the weight.