The Gathering

 

And when the time of the Gathering comes

You will Know

You will feel

And you will go

To the east, to the west

To the north and to the south

To kneel at the gates of the opened Mouth

That opens up her Way

Her world, her earth

As she swallows up the living

And offers up the births

Of the new tribes who stand

Free from chains of forgotten days

As we sing up all that’s lost

And call in the ancient ways

That remind us of the Coming

Of the Going and of the Stand

With earth red faces and stomping feet

We will dance upon the land

Drummers call the living

Pipers release the dead

Singers bring the people

As so the legends have said

And with the rains will come the storms

As redness washes the land

With all our might and beating hearts

We will separate the hand

That holds the grip on our fractured selves

The image that pins us down

We will heal it with our voices

So it no longer makes a sound

And at last the people will be free

To roam, to live, to Be

And all the pain will wash from us

The timeless memory

With veils lifted and clear new eyes

We will walk the earth once more

Be it fin or fish, bird or hoof

Hairless skin or paw

As side by side the middle path

Opens up its Way

As balance breathes

Let it be so, on this

The Ancient Song of Days.

By: Lorna Bailey