Vernon Mooers writes

In A Clearing By This River                           

Among the moss and pine needles
        this blanket of leaves
I lay my head to rest:
We who came so far and loved
        for so many winters:
Forever never lasts forever.
I put up no resistance now
am yours to do with what you wish.

You who walk through walls of fir
visit the resting places of your ancestors
walk softly on my grave
         quietly speaking
remember the wild roses of this place
how they blow in the wind on summer days
their smell in the morning rain:
remember my face, smiling
transitory, my love
like the autumn wind;
when winter frost glazes
a small hole in your heart
place my hand over it
feel my touch rise up through earth
from these fiery depths
to burn softly in your hand.
 
 
 The Jack Pine -- Tom Thomson