On golden bough he once sat astride

That leafen face, green dark-eyed

Midwinter sprites once danced in white

Pending return of the warming light

 

Once the rebirth of all nature’s gifts

Quietly waved away deep snowdrifts

Nevermore the leafen man to awake

All gone now, the magikal mandrake

 

Gone too are the Beltane bonfires

As are the credos of age-old sires

Once we chose maiden Queens of May

When Gaia’s renewal was on display

 

To the mighty dollar we now bow and pray

Seeking even more to enslave and slay

Mother Nature will never pardon our lust

No sorrow from her when we are but dust

 

Danu or Shakti or age-old Tellus Mater

Whatever you call her, it doesn’t matter

Still time to earn the Mother’s reprieve

If that desire to cherish we can retrieve

 

It’s all up to us, yes just you and me

To love the newborns upon our knee

What will we leave when we’re gone

If a vibrant Green Man is not passed on.