Retreat to Ross Falls (30 April 2019)

Tell them I have gone to Ross Falls,

to hearken to the crows

and listen to the whoosh of the waters

along the swift brook above.                                      1

Tell them I have gone to Ross Falls,

to bathe in the torrent

falling from on high, down over the slates,

into the shallow pool below.                                      2

Tell them I have gone to Ross Falls,

to listen to the crows speaking

in the boughs of Oak, Maple and Sycamore;

deciphering tales of another world.                            3

Tell them I have gone to Ross Falls,

to listen for the monks

chanting in the valley below the waters,

‘twixt deluge and river_                                             4

And when I hear their ancient songs,

I will go with them

into imagined holy landscapes,

leaving all of mundanity behind—

if only for a few magical hours!                                 5

Tell them I have gone to Ross Falls;

I have taken poetic flight

and they shall never see

the likes of me again,

unless they, too, learn to fly!                          6

Tell them I have gone to Ross Falls

for I have heard the music

that resounds from before my own creation;

a music of mulch, trees and power.                            7

And once you have heard

this ancient music,

there is no way to turn back;

Drop your anchors

in the Given as you may—

it is time to sing cosmic songs

and sway!                                                      8

Tell them I have gone to Ross Falls,

and may never come home again—

tell them to sell the house, if they want to;

for I have no more need of such things!        

For I have gone to Ross Falls and found

the future that an earthen wisdom reveals!                9

Nema!   So mote it be!