beginning of water
You are the stream I followed
Searching for your source
Upstream the journey from valley to hill
Higher in the course traveled the smooth stones
Harder each step, shorter the breath
Steeper and more fragile, less air to breathe
The steps come slower, slower, as if age has set
But reaching the top I find only sky
And I realize that patience is a virtue
And if there ever was a beginning of water
It exceeds my reach
And though foolish things are left to men
I sit and will not try the return journey
For I have already heard the story
And I already know that only the water can tell
In its waterfall voice
Of its ending, crashing into mist.
