— unpredictable thoughts

You that sang to me once sing to me now
let me hear your long lifted note
sur­vive with me
the star is fad­ing
I can think far­ther than that but I for­get
do you hear me

do you still hear me
does your air
remem­ber you
o breath of morn­ing
night song morn­ing song
I have with me
all that I do not know
I have lost none of it

but I know bet­ter now
than to ask you
where you learned that music
where any of it came from
once there were lions in China

I will lis­ten until the flute stops
and the light is old again

- W.S. MERWIN