“Only in silence the word,
Only in dark the light,
Only in dying life:
Bright the hawk’s flight
On the empty sky.
“The Creation of Éa,” Ursula K. Le Guin
*****
We sing rounds at the end of WisCon, after the SignOut that officially ends the con, just standing in a circle in the hallway on the second floor. We do it because we can’t bear for it to be over, because we are so sad to go. It’s hard to say goodbye to these people who share our love for these stories, these people we have come to love.
It’s become a tradition these last few years, singing ourselves out. People come and join us, friends and strangers, people wander off again to collect suitcases and hugs. We end with a round written by Benjamin Newman, set to words by Ursula. Singing helps the sadness, a little.
If you’re doing it as a round, the second voice comes in on ‘dark’. Appropriate.
Forgive my wobbly voice.
Glad to hear your version of this! We sing it a bit different, but still beautiful. Ursula K!