Victoria “Toya” Fragoso

“In the Echoes” (The Rabbits, Shaun Tan)

—

I walked the rivers before your world began

Felt the dark, rich earth beneath my feet

Stories were carried with reverence

Whispered in tongues you could not understand

—

You shook our forests with thunder

Starved magic lands with your hunger

Burned spirits til there were no more

Stole our children to strange shores

—

You can carve your name in stone

You can claim this land for your own

You can pave new roads on stolen ground

You can push our voices down

But the wind will carry the sounds

Each breath, we breathe, the earth surrounds

And in the echoes, we will be found

—

Fire danced within us before the cities rose

Dreams were written deep beneath the sands

Torn from our Mother, as stars cast down to land

Like roots, we reach out still with thirsty hands

—

You shook our forests with thunder

Starved magic lands with your hunger

Burned spirits til there were no more

Stole our children to strange shores

—

You can carve your name in stone

You can claim this land for your own

You can pave new roads on stolen ground

You can push our voices down

But the wind will carry the sounds

Each breath, we breathe, the earth surrounds

And in the echoes, we will be found

—

You can’t hold the sky, you can’t own the rain

You can’t fight the wind or silence the waves

Here the land still screams through the red of dawn

Truths you tried to bury stand tall

—

I walked the rivers before the winds had changed

Sentí la tierra debajo de mis pies

Stories were whispered with reverence

En lenguas que no podrías entender

No podrías entender