The Beautiful River

The Beautiful River
The ancient woman looks across the white capped water
Of the beautiful river, her river, the Ohio…
Strong flow, deep here but more shallow in places,
The beautiful river of Shawnee love,
Pouring Appalachian mysteries down into
Mississippian muddy waters…
Indian blood and earth,
Allegheny and Monogahelia,
Water and life, the Ohio,
Onward and meandering ever lower
Through forested mountains
Almost to the plains,
She flows with the waters,
Singing an ancient song,
Telling of ancient peoples who loved the river
As I love the river now…
In this we join—
On the banks of the beautiful Ohio.
(C) Daphne Yvonne Bradshaw, 8 December 1999.