She’s a River

She’s a river
You want to ride her
Along her smooth crystal waters
Through her raging turbulence
All the way

Dive inside her
Hidden below her surface
Drift apart
To the bubbling hope of distance
You drank from her edges
She drew sinuous lines through your world

You think you can forget her
She’ll grow inside you
Alive like holy water
Heady as wine
Warm as whiskey
A traveler to your dark spaces
Your hidden world
Your lonely places

Build your dams
Hold her back
Keep her captive
Tell her you don’t believe

Every night
You swim in her curves
Almost young again
Until you wake
Afraid she’ll drown you
Pull you under with her stones
It’s in her nature
She’s a river