When did we go to the Michigan woods?
I only know
That the air was sweet with the low white clover,
And the honey-bee, the wild free rover,
Had never far to go.
How long did we stay in the Michigan woods?
I only know
That the fire-weed flamed crimson higher and higher
Till only one blossom crowned the spire,
While below the seeds lay side by side,
Ready to fly out far and wide
As the winds might chance to blow.
How long did we stay in the Michigan woods?
I only know
That the Elder-blossoms grew white, then brown,
Then the scarlet berries hung heavily down,
Over the green below.
How long did we stay in the Michigan woods?
I only know
That the thistle flung open his armor green
Till his silken vest was seen,
Then changed to a fairy in gossamer grace
That brushed with her silvery robes my face,
As she floated high and low.
When did we leave the Michigan woods?
I only know
That cluster of aster purple and white,
And the golden-rod like a flash of light,
Had set all the roads aglow.
When did we leave the Michigan woods?
I can only say
That the yellow poplars trembled over
Where the weary bee hunted in vain for clover
The morning we came away. ~ Anna C. Brackett
Excerpted from Favorite Flies and Their Histories
by Mary Orvis Marbury, republished by the Lyons Press.