Awake! flower of the forest,
Sky-treading bird of the prairie.
Awake! awake! wonderful fawn-eyed One.
When you look upon me I am satisfied;
As flowers that drink dew.
The breath of your mouth is
The fragrance of flowers in the morning,
Your breath is their fragrance at evening
In the moon-of-fading-leaf.
Do not the red streams
Of my veins run toward you
As forest-streams to the sun
In the moon of bright nights?
When you are beside me my heart sings;
A branch it is, dancing,
Dancing before the Wind-spirit
In the moon of strawberries.
When you frown upon me, beloved,
My heart grows dark—
A shining river the shadows of clouds darken,
Then with your smiles comes the sun
And makes to look like gold
Furrows the cold wind drew in the water's face.
Myself! behold me! blood of my beating heart.
From the Path on the Rainbow: Song and Chants
Of the Indians of North America
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