Veil down snow

What

What happened then
which rock
caused the river
to divert into waiting
stranded by dry earth
into ugly pools of loss

which alien noise
emptied the sky
of birds who flew
too fast away
to be counted real

what tiny movement
held the mountain
to be like a statue
as the snow veiled down
for ten thousand years

what did happen
that turned your blood
to stone around me
my eyes to masks
your smile to politeness