Swan Poem

With winter at the mouth, white swans have gone
And the black, proceeding south down the grey dawn
Cry after them, cry out over the town
Ensnare them with a shout, “Bring the swans down.”
The summer flies away where the swans crossed
And streaks across the grey, south golden lost
No man may call them back, once the swans fly
The white swans and the black, down the grey sky

That’s the poem I was thinking of. I’ve seen it attributed to Yeats, and it fits his style and subjects, but I’m not sure. Others say that Laim Clancy or Tommy Makem wrote it. Both wrote song lyrics, so that’s also a possibility.

Either way, it fits, and fits well with the song they wove it into.

One of the themes of Hunter in Shadows, the next Familiar Generations book, is home, missing home, and family. Which fits the tone of the song, sort of. Jude tends toward excess introspection at times.

SIGH. And a story is nibbling at me, the story of the Hunt in the storm from Nikolai’s point of view. Shoo, story, go home.