O good children, wake and rise.
Night withdraws, new Day has come.
Cast sleep’s dregs out from your eyes,
Come forth and meet the gold of Dawn.
All good children of Riverre,
From farming hand to artisan,
Beloved children, so very dear,
Come forth, be warmed beneath the Sun.
Heave, ho! Heave, ho! Load the wagon! Load it so!
With fresh hewn logs stacked to a peak,
The Tradesman treads the winding road.
He cracks the reins, he trains his ear,
Toward the river’s gentle croon.
Lay down the logs along the banks,
Beneath the brilliant light of Noon.
Great hooves clop and wood wheels creek,
As he guides his horse down breezy way.
Where wave the fields of barley and wheat,
Bundled in sheafs and sacks of grain.
Heave, ho! Heave, ho! Load the wagon! Load it so!
Sheafs of gold and sacks of brown,
They tread upon the winding road.
From house to house and shack to shack,
He hands wheat to all along his path.
Until under painted sky of Dusk,
The Tradesman comes to the mill at last.
One by one and two by two,
They pile those brown stacks wide and high!
The weight of gold sits in his hands.
The grateful Tradesman bids goodnight.
Heave, ho! Heave, ho! Empty that wagon! Empty it so!
But leave one sack of grain alone,
And give him some meat as he turns to go,
For the Tradesmen have traveled hither and fro!
Heave, ho! Heave, ho! Go forth, good Tradesmen, by lantern’s glow!
Travel the Night, return to your homes,
As we tread upon the winding road.
We tread upon the winding road.
If you’ve enjoyed this excerpt and would like to read more of my monthly fantasy romance serial, The Castle on the Hill, you may follow the link below to the first chapter.
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The Castle on the Hill, Chapter 1: The Beacon Across the Way
I really liked this.
Excellent! I love the composition and storytelling woven in that poem. The Tradesman's day is complete, in all its wholesome glory, from early morn till dusk.