Just as the flooded ditches 
are sealed with ice,
there is music or there
is snow.
The morning light
comes later and later.
Once I would have felt
this as heaviness,
but the edges of darkness
are so soft and full of threads,
the light is teased out
and ready.
I’ve decided to speak—
I’ve released
certainty, sent the pain
of grief and love
like a deer into night.

From the poem Andante Grazioso by Yukon poet Clea Roberts (stanzas 1-3)

Text Authorship:

• by Clea Roberts (b. 1974) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

• by Carmen Braden (b. 1985), "Solstice Shadows", 2014 [ satb chorus and piano ], Canadian Music Centre
      Score: Canadian Music Centre [external link]  [sung text checked 1 time]

Researcher for this page: Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2026-03-30
Line count: 17
Word count: 69