Summer's End

It is one of those absolutely perfect weekends at the end of summer when you can feel the cooler air just around the corner but the sun is still shining bright and warm. Yesterday we hiked in a beautiful place with friends and observed the beginnings of autumn -- the leaves were changing color and sounded crispy in the tumult of strong winds. At the end of a hike was a poem. Enjoy!

I am the heat of your hearth on the cold winter nights,

the friendly shade screening you from the summer sun,

and my fruits are refreshing draughts quenching your thirst as you journey on.

I am the beam that holds your house,

the board of your table,

the bed on which you lie,

and the timber that builds your boat.

I am the handle of your hoe,

the door of your homestead,

the wood of your cradle,

and the shell of your coffin.

I am the bread of kindness and the flower of beauty.

"Ye who pass by, listen to my prayer: Harm me not."

                       

            Portuguese Prayer of the Woods