Malcolm Gladwin

Once Upon A Word

 

I wrote a word and let it go,

A seed it was, I did not know;

It fell to earth in secret ground,

And there a living tree was found.

 

I gave a word to one long dead,

It rose to life and gave them bread;

I whispered low, the branches grew,

And clothed the land in morning dew.

 

I read a word that made them glow,

I took a word and watched it grow;

It bore a fruit I could not see,

Yet filled the world with mystery.

 

I spoke a word I can’t take back,

It darkened sky and turned it black;

The fruit was sweet, the poison whole,

It sowed a storm that stole a soul.