Thus the Birch Canoe was builded
In the valley, by the river,
In the bosom of the forest;
And the forest life was in it,
All its mystery and its magic,
All the lightness of the birch tree,
All the toughness of the cedar,
All the larch's supple sinews;
And it floated on the river
Like a yellow leaf in autumn,
Like a yellow water lily.

HENRY W LONGFELLOW