Does Anyone Know?
I found this little bit of a poem a number of years ago, but have not been able to identify it. It is haunting, and I hope that someone here knows it and can give me the rest of it. Pleaseeee!
Once I was wild as the eagle in the sky,
Free to love, to live and to die.
I roamed this land from the mountains
To the sea, brother to the elk,
The bear and the deer.
Up the rivers, the lakes
and the redwood trees,
This was my land,
As far as I could see.
This will be the last song of our people,
The first people in this first world.
Now we are going, for you it will be hard,
You folk, farmers and fighters.
We are not sorry this world is passing,
People of the next world
Will not be long in coming.
10 comments:
Thanks Nobody. I ran across it ages ago and really liked it. It is native but I don't know if the poet is or was.
...Z
Dang it, this is driving me crazy. I'm an English major, love good poetry, absolutely thrive in doing research, but I've been searching and searching and can't find this poem. My first thought, too, was that it sounds Native American, but there are so many poets who write about Native American feelings, and Native American souls, that it wouldn't necessarily be written by someone who is a Native American. Yeats, Poe, all the old masters...could be any one of them. Let me know if you track it down, pleeze!
Darlene:
Thanks for looking. I have had no success either, but if I do, I will post it here.
...Z
Z,
I wish I could help you . . . it does sound American Indian . . . but sounds like something that would have been written a long time ago.
Nina
I appreciate lthe thought, Nanina. If you ever run into it, I would love to know more about it.It is one of lthose strange things that make yhou feel like you should know it, but just can't drag it to the surface.
...Z
I found your post while searching for the origins of this myself. The Desiderata CD by Les Crane includes a spoken word recording of this poem. It is beautiful. Unfortunately, the only credits given are that it is Native American in origin.
Thanks Anonymous. It isn't much, but it is more than I knew before. I really appreciate you sharing.
...Z
Hi, I think it is from an Indian Chief when he laid down arms against the White people. I have not been able to find out which Chief.
I've been searching for that poem for ages. My sister has it on casette with Desiderata.
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