Mountain Poem by joop Berse

for Sandy

An oath,
world of stones, grass, birds,
the sky,

into a flag, song of life,
its gorges an aria,

a soprano's voice rising and falling
into a lake of sulphur, cutting edge,

feet of lava, throat of ice,
rasping a lake of crystals
into the nights interior.

A sea of lusty waters dives from its heights,
flowers jerk in the wind; small children
on a giant's lap, nagging.

And the clouds
write their philosophy on its peak.