Earth, Teach Me

Earth teach me stillness ~ as the grasses are stilled with light.
Earth teach me suffering ~ as old stones suffer with memory.
Earth teach me humility ~ as blossoms are humble with beginning.
Earth teach me caring ~ as a mother who secures her young.
Earth teach me courage ~ as the tree which stands alone.
Earth teach me limitation ~ as the ant which crawls on the ground.
Earth teach me freedom ~ as the eagle which soars through the air.
Earth teach me resignation ~ as the leaves which die in the fall.
Earth teach me regeneration ~ as the seed rises in the spring.
Earth teach me to forget myself ~ as melted snow forgets its life.
Earth teach me to remember kindness ~ as dry fields weep with rain.

–Ute Nation, North America.
Composer Rupert Lang [1948 – ]. Recorded by musica intima in Ryerson Church, Vancouver, November 17, 19, 25, 27, 2008; available on the CD INTO LIGHT on the ATMA Classique label.