I grew up at the foot of Tiger Mountain. It's a dark and mysterious mountain where very few people go. Only brave wanderers would ever explore it, seeing that the forest blocks out most of the light on the established trails. The mountain is also in a VERY rural area.
Wanderers this morning came by
Where did they go
Graceful in the morning light
To banner fair
(The verb form of banner is to display prominently. The archaic noun form of fair is a woman or a beloved woman. In this case I would interpret the verse as "To honor a beloved woman who died)
To follow you softly
(To follow the beloved woman could mean two things in this context. He could either be on the mountain to feel her presence, or to kill himself and follow her in death)
In the cold mountain air
(The cold mountain air of Tiger Mountain is not something that people willingly expose themselves to. In this context, the artist is on the mountain for a selfless reason.)
Through the forest
Down to your grave
Where the birds wait
And the tall grasses wave
They do not
know you anymore
Dear shadow alive and well
(Shadow is the poetic symbol of mystery and death. He knows that it is alive and well)
How can the body die
You tell me everything
Anything true
(The artist begs the shadow for the answers to life and death. This poetic act of exasperation leaves him feeling like he cannot move on with his life without the answers.)
In the town one morning I went
Staggering through premonitions of my death
I don't see anybody that dear to me
(Premonitions: a feeling of anticipation of or anxiety over a future event; The artist walks back down the mountain and sees no reason to continue living. He is deeply distraught and contemplating suicide. He tells no one because he sees no one worth telling.)
Jesse
(The artist addresses the beloved woman by name)
I don't know what I have done
I'm turning myself to a demon
I don't know what I have done
I'm turning myself to a demon
(Realizing how distraught he is, the artist decides not to commit suicide. He tells Jesse that he doesn't know what he has done. Jesse most likely died in a car accident near Tiger Mountain; the artist may have been the driver. His self-hatred after the event is turning him into "a demon")
I grew up at the foot of Tiger Mountain. It's a dark and mysterious mountain where very few people go. Only brave wanderers would ever explore it, seeing that the forest blocks out most of the light on the established trails. The mountain is also in a VERY rural area.
Wanderers this morning came by Where did they go Graceful in the morning light To banner fair (The verb form of banner is to display prominently. The archaic noun form of fair is a woman or a beloved woman. In this case I would interpret the verse as "To honor a beloved woman who died) To follow you softly (To follow the beloved woman could mean two things in this context. He could either be on the mountain to feel her presence, or to kill himself and follow her in death) In the cold mountain air (The cold mountain air of Tiger Mountain is not something that people willingly expose themselves to. In this context, the artist is on the mountain for a selfless reason.)
Through the forest Down to your grave Where the birds wait And the tall grasses wave They do not know you anymore
Dear shadow alive and well (Shadow is the poetic symbol of mystery and death. He knows that it is alive and well) How can the body die You tell me everything Anything true (The artist begs the shadow for the answers to life and death. This poetic act of exasperation leaves him feeling like he cannot move on with his life without the answers.)
In the town one morning I went Staggering through premonitions of my death I don't see anybody that dear to me (Premonitions: a feeling of anticipation of or anxiety over a future event; The artist walks back down the mountain and sees no reason to continue living. He is deeply distraught and contemplating suicide. He tells no one because he sees no one worth telling.)
Jesse (The artist addresses the beloved woman by name) I don't know what I have done I'm turning myself to a demon I don't know what I have done I'm turning myself to a demon (Realizing how distraught he is, the artist decides not to commit suicide. He tells Jesse that he doesn't know what he has done. Jesse most likely died in a car accident near Tiger Mountain; the artist may have been the driver. His self-hatred after the event is turning him into "a demon")