If I were a river
I’d like to put some color
On my banks
There a poppy, here some cress,
Forget-me-not
And yellow flag.
I’d place some rocks
Inside by bends
To make me froth
It’s hemlock-white
my foam
beware an end.
I’d hide my falls
A place uncharted
Beneath the eyes of
Trees conniving
A quiet jump
For me alone.
I’d cry the swan,
The reeds abandoned,
The lands I flood
I’d call my own
I’d make them meadows
I’d be contented
Until a roar
From ravaged shores
A startled heron
At last the sea.
I’d wail: stay back!
But a hurried flow
From springs unknown
Beneath my gleam...
To buy more time
I’d take a turn
Still out of reach.
