flows a smooth stone river
telling stories for free.
The only payment that's due
is a listening ear,
an open mind and a heart that is clear;
for the stones tell a tale
of a youth in her teens,
who loved the woods,
the flowers and streams
and a little retarded girl
dreaming sun dreams.
She once climbed the cliffs
that border the river-
overlooking the swim hole
the height made her shiver.
Her knees were a-knocking.
Lord, she wanted to jump
and be like the boys she admired
but the lump in her stomach,
the fear that she felt
had her frozen like a statue,
iceberg that won't melt.
Down below the waters ran,
the falls filled the hole
as fast as it ran out.
The children were laughing,
the boys calling her name-
she wanted to prove she had guts
much the same as the boys. But
her delicate heart filled with fear and trembling,
was stuck on the cliff
as her mind tried assembling
the courage she needed to jump.
Alas one young man forced the lump
from her stomach into her throat.
He pushed her.
Fear had held her mute-
but as she fell
she let out a scream-
the long moment of falling
was out of a dream
she had had as a child.
Proving her guts was a failure it seemed,
but deep in her heart
a victory beamed--
that she leapt off the cliff
and joined river's flow
at the touch of a youth
that she didn't know
The fear was cracked,
the task was done.
Now, deep jumping might be fun
thanks to the boy who gave her a push.
Though her mind angered
that her guts were mush
compared to the boys,
her soul was elated,
not angry at all-
that it took the touch of a male
for the fall to come.
Losing her pride
led to her fun.
The stones sing lightly of moon's love for sun,
of a girl in her teens
who tried so to run
from her woman's heart,
her fear of heights
her deep inner passion
for laughter and light.
Yes. Down in the forests of Cherokee
wisdom flows from river to sea
and the stones tell stories of a heart
that is free.
I worked as an aid for a special needs 5 year old girl the summer I was 18. I traveled with the family on an extended camping trip. One favorite spot was a swimming hole in Cherokee National Forest.
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