|
|
Home
History Culture |
|
Dakota Ballad
By Evelyn (Ziegler) Tonra
| They call me foreign because |
Where ripened wheat is a |
|
my home is north
|
golden wave
|
| Where all is quiet |
And men in fields move |
|
and the land is flat
|
endlessly
|
| And wild birds flutter |
Where cows and calves |
|
over grass and hay
|
eat new-made hay
|
| Where crickets sing |
And women at five |
|
me asleep at night
|
go fetch them
|
| And wolves and coyotes |
Where children chase
|
|
howl to the moon
|
a run-away creek
|
| Where wind, sand and rain |
And the day sings |
|
play tag
|
and endless song
|
| And the sun keeps all |
They call me foreign.
|
|
in harmony.
|
|
| They call me foreign. |
|
|
|
| They call me foreign because |
|
|
my home is north
|
|
| Where the snow lies down |
They call me foreign because |
|
and rests itself
|
my home is north
|
| And ice embraces |
Where the land is flat |
|
the lilac shrubs
|
and all alone
|
| Where worms sleep long
|
And neighbors sing |
|
in a lap of earth
|
in back-yard talk
|
| And footsteps ring |
Where dogs bark freely |
|
in high pitched notes
|
without hesitation
|
| Where face looks flushed |
And bread is baked by |
|
with chilly blood
|
open windows
|
| And breaths go out |
Where home is warmth |
|
in puffs of white.
|
and all is quiet
|
| They call me foreign.
|
And a voice is |
|
known to all
|
| They call me foreign because |
They call me foreign |
|
my home is north
|
|
By Evelyn (Ziegler) Tonra, 1956.
(Evelyn is of German-Russian heritage and grew up on a farm near
Beulah, ND.)
Reprinted with permission of Evelyn (Ziegler) Tonra.
|
|
Permission
to use any images from the GRHC website may be requested
by contacting Michael
M. Miller |
|
|
