A Woman of the Iron People

The water says:

I remember.

I came first of all.

There was nothing before me.

In the time of rain

rain fell on the water.

In the time of dryness

the water reflected the sky.

I came first of all.

There was nothing before me.

Vapor rose.

It became

the tree of heaven.

Vapor rose.

It became

the bird of the sun.

A seed fell.

The earth began growing.

Animals sprang up.

The vegetation was thick.

Then came the people.

Then came the spirits

and the powerful demons

who live under the earth.

Let me tell you:

I will outlast them.

Even the demons

will disappear in time.

I have no shape.

No one can divide me.

No one can say

what I really am.