**The Oak and the River** [Intro – slow fingerpicking acoustic guitar + soft distant thunder cellos] (soft) There was a time before the names… [Verse 1 still slow and fragile] An old oak stood where the two rivers met Roots deep in stories the world would forget It spoke with the wind in a language of leaves And listened to secrets the water would weave [drums and electric guitars join] A wanderer came with a heart full of rust Carrying questions and ashes and dust He asked for a truth that could silence the pain The oak only answered with slow falling rain [Pre-Chorus] The river ran cold The river ran clear It carried the names Of everyone here [Chorus] Sing to the oak And drink from the river One holds the past One takes it forever What you give to the water Will never return What you give to the tree Will continue to burn [Verse 2] The wanderer slept with his back to the bark And dreamed of a woman who walked through the dark She wore the moonlight like silver and thread And whispered the names of the living and dead She said every sorrow must eventually flow Down to the places the living don’t go But some kinds of love are too heavy to leave So the oak keeps them hidden inside of its leaves [Pre-Chorus] The river ran cold The river ran deep It carried the promises No one could keep [Chorus] Sing to the oak And drink from the river One holds the past One takes it forever What you give to the water Will never return What you give to the tree Will continue to burn [Bridge – heavier, blues-rock edge] (stronger) I carved my name in the oldest of wood I gave my regrets to the dark of the flood One of them stayed One of them went Now I don’t know Which one I meant [Final Chorus – full progressive folk-rock power] Sing to the oak And drink from the river One holds the past One takes it forever What you give to the water Will never return What you give to the tree Will continue to burn [Outro – acoustic + soft electric] (soft) The oak still stands Where the two rivers meet… And the water still knows Every name that it keeps.
