STONEKING
I was there in the living stone,
As the world convulsed to birth,
And in the stars of the galaxies
That spun the stuff of Earth.
I bathed in the seas of bitter rain
As Terra found her form,
And on the tempest wild and dark
I ruled the coming storm.
And here may I linger in edge to your mind-
(Look for me, list for me, do!)
My day it is dying, my time is near done
Wait for me, give me my due.
I am here in the ancient stone,
As the world grows dim with tears,
And in the burning of meteors
That bear your human fears.
I drift in the showered energy
Of Terra’s wondering,
And from the age of reasoned cold
I’m dispossessed as king.
And here may I wait at the edge of your sight
(Reach for me, seek for me, now)
My day it is doomed, my eye growing dim
Rise for me, can you not bow?
And I shall be there in the crumbled stone,
As the world it is tossed away,
And in the dust as the star-stuff falls
Will the ages light my way.
I’ll fade like a wraith of the long ago
As Terra lays her down-
And from the silence that falls in the end
Then shall I pluck my crown.
And here may I lie at the edge of your life
(Cling to me, speak for me, then)
That my day be reborn, and my life be renewed
And I shall be lord again.
But perchance I am lost in the ebb of the tide
(Named no more, neither cursed, nor blessed)
Oh then shall I sail to oblivion's shore
And there may I dreamless rest.
