Boulder River went unwilling
Into this present age of bondage
Where death and decay reign.
What would it have been like
Before knowledge was chosen over love?
It is so beautiful now
With the dense foliage on either side,
The waterfalls cascading
Down the sheer cliffs.
Would the water have been
The purest of pure
Able to quench the thirst
Of man and beast?
Perhaps the intensity of color
Would have blinded the eyes of mortals.
The wild things
Instead of hiding
Would come out to greet us.
The bird song so sweet
We would have wept and laughed together.
I know the sign at the trailhead
Would not be there
Warning the hikers
Of the dangers of the wilderness.
© 2012 Julie Clark