Let the River Flow

[True Story – the river was called the Mehde]

When I was a child I drank from our River,
Waded in its currents, my face to the sun.
When I was a child I watched it from the railroad bridge,
Lost track of the hours as I let my River run.

The River flows to the horizon.
The River flows, keeps ebbing and rising.
The River flows.  It makes our crops grow.
Let the River flow.

[Verse not recorded:  One day I in the paper I read about my River.
They wanted no more floods, so they straightened its banks.
When they were finished the river flooded higher
So they put it all back in its old banks again.

The River flows to the horizon.
The River flows, keeps ebbing and rising.
The River flows.  It makes our crops grow.
Let the River flow.]

One day I came home, I went to see my River,
But the smell in the air showed something had died.
In the place of our dairy were the Northern Milk Factory,
And Fromm's Rubber Plant and the water was white.

The River flows to the horizon.
The River flows, keeps ebbing and rising.
The River flows.  It makes our crops grow.
Let the River flow.

It took many dead fish, many new mayors,
Many petitions, many complaints.
But now, when I visit I can sit on my railroad bridge
Though I wouldn't drink the water – it looks clean again.

The River flows to the horizon.
The River flows, keeps ebbing and rising.
The River flows.  It makes our crops grow.
Let the River flow.

©  2004  Ingrid Heldt