Earth Poem

When I was a sophomore in high school, my AP English class got to spend the year studying poetry of all sorts and Native American Literature. Yes, we studied other things, but those were the main subjects that I remember. One poem that we did as a class for a video project became one of my favorites, but I cannot remember exactly what the poem is. Only the first line, and part of the second: "To be of the Earth is to know/ The restlessness of..."

For some reason, these words have been chanting over and and over in my head. I feel like sharing this poem with all of you as spring comes and we can all appreciate being outside more, in the warmth of a new season. Today I did a little Google search, and this is what I found (since I can't find my original copy of the poem anywhere... it's probably in my personal items box in the storage unit):

To be of the Earth is to know
the restlessness of being a seed
the darkness of being planted
the struggle toward the light
the pain of growth into the light
the joy of bursting and bearing fruit
the love of being food for someone
the scattering of your seeds
the decay of the seasons
the mystery of death
and the miracle of birth.
--John Soos