Where the black pines part, a small red ember stays I take the path the daylight cannot name Your lantern trembles far beyond the trees A copper dot inside the swallowing green I count the steps until the ground gives way And hear your name beneath the roots again No road returns what the dark has claimed If you can see me, leave the ember there I’ll cross the hush and meet you in the air Hold one small flame where the branches divide I am still coming, though the miles turn wide Call through the veil, let the lost path bend I will not leave you alone at the end The fog folds close around my borrowed coat Old leaves cling like letters to my throat Your window of red keeps shrinking from view Still every step carries me nearer to you The roots remember every buried vow Hold one small flame where the branches divide I am still coming, though the miles turn wide Call through the veil, let the lost path bend I will not leave you alone at the end When morning finds the path erased When all the signs have lost their place Take my hand; we’ll walk by sound Two names held fast above the ground Keep one small flame where the branches divide I am beside you; the dark has no claim Call through the veil, let the lost path bend We have each other beyond the end The ember dims, but does not disappear The trees fall quiet; I know you are near
