The brackish roots of river pine
Anchored in my curving spine
Bend to the whims of wind's design
And I lay down at your side

Above the brine of reds in clay
A swollen angel oaks bouquet
In the red-winged blackbird's eyes of grey
A saltwater tear resides

But the sand and the earthen parapet
Silts into this rivulet
The bluffs and the banks will soon forget
A single tear was cried

And in this spawning ground it blooms
The nectar and the petal plumes
A purple swallow now exhumed
From the river that has died

Palmately spread delphinium
Bachelor-buttoned malva comes
To be your lilied bride

The crimson of rinoculous
Gardenia and dianthus
The bloodless ivory water-lotus
Sweetly opens wide

But even the most fondly named
Rooted and green leaves framed
Surely must come to be reclaimed