Your Names in the Autumn Grass

[Verse 1] The orchard keeps its last red fruit The fields are folded, dark and still I leave a bowl beside the door And hear the old names cross the hill [Pre-Chorus] A blackbird settles on the gate The year turns over, slow and deep I set a flame against the dusk For all the ones the earth will keep [Chorus] Come near, Samhain, veil of the year Bring what we loved, bring what we fear One small flame where the cold winds pass Your names are alive in the autumn grass [Verse 2] The kettle sings; the windows cloud Your wool coat waits along the stair I tell the room the things I missed As if your listening still lived there [Pre-Chorus] The leaves move softly through the lane The moon lays silver on the stone I speak your names into the night And find I’m not here all alone [Chorus] Come near, Samhain, veil of the year Bring what we loved, bring what we fear One small flame where the cold winds pass Your names are alive in the autumn grass [Bridge] No door swings wide, no spell is cast Just bread, salt, warmth, and memory The living hold the ones who’ve passed As roots hold fast beneath the trees [Final Chorus] Come near, Samhain, veil of the year Bring what we loved, bring what we fear One small flame where the cold winds pass Your names are alive in the autumn grass [Outro] The orchard sleeps, the candle stays Till morning lifts the veil away