Anonymous - This was our land

The land that the mountain needed in order
To raise in majesty.
The land my people needed in order
To roam its secrets in reverence.
This land was the land
Of our great waters
The beating heart of nature flowing through time
That we could not remember.
This was our land.

The land that provided everything good for my people.
The land was always our land
And the sun set upon it
The rain washed it
And the fire was kind in its fury.
It was so for all time.
Then the land was taken from us.
It is your land.

Do you know how to speak to the land, my brother?
Do you listen to what it tells you?
Can you keep its secrets to yourself?
Sell the land, my brother?
You might as well sell
The sun, the moon, the stars.

---

Native American Indian lament, probably 19th century