River of time:
Vibrant vein,
Bent, crooked,
Older than the Red Men
Who named you;
Ancient as the winds
That break on your
Serene and shining face;
One time western boundary of America
From whose center
Your broad shoulders now reach
To touch sisters
On the flanks.

The Eye in the Ceiling. River of Bones and Flesh and Blood (Mississippi), st. 1