The Orchard

Last night we went out

To the orchard in the snow

There in the constellations

The big dipper far below

We walked through the blackness

Felt the endless space around

And you bent down on your knee

And picked an apple from the ground

Out past the forest

Where the st. Lawrence lies

We heard the cargo ships go

Pushing through the ice

You turned when we heard them

Your breath hung in the air

And you said, just 'cause we can't see them

Doesn't mean that they're not there

But I'm not afraid

Of what I can't see

Don't need a reason

Don't need to believe

We climbed up the ladder

That leaned against the hay

And out in the distance

Saw the highway far away

The headlights all sparkled

Blending into the sky above

Where the moon was coming up

And I knew that's all there was

But I'm not afraid

Of all that space

'Cause everything I need

Is written on your face

Over by the barn

In the dark we heard the geese

They carried our boots past

The naked little trees

We smelled the cold bark in

The air and the sweetness of

The fruit on the ground

And the wood-smoke above