Song

When The Forest Took It Back

From the album “Songs of Iron and Pine – Tales from Bergslagen”

TRACK 10

After the mine closes, there is no great conquest, only a quiet return. Birches rise between the rails, birds nest beneath the roofs, and flowers open across the abandoned yards. Where iron wheels and heavy boots once shaped the ground, nature creates new life from rust, stone, and memory.

0:00

-0:00

Lyrics

Verse 1The gates stood open to the morning, The rails lay silver in the rain. Along the yard the grass was rising, And skylarks nested there again. Verse 2Young birches gathered by the chimney, Green ivy climbed the loading wall. The foxglove bloomed beside the pathway, Where boots no longer passed at all. ChorusWhen the forest took it back, No banners flew, no trumpets cried. It laid soft moss across the track And filled the empty walls with life. Where iron wheels had marked the ground, The summer opened, leaf by leaf. And every place that lost its sound Awoke beneath the rain and seed. Verse 3A wren built under rusted rafters, The swallows crossed the evening air. Red clover spread beside the doorway, And sunlight warmed the engine stair. Verse 4The children followed hidden pathways And picked wild berries by the stone. They knew the hill by birds and blossoms, Not by the work it once had known. ChorusWhen the forest took it back, No victory rang across the hill. It laid soft moss across the track And let the weathered stones grow still. Where iron wheels had marked the ground, The summer opened, leaf by leaf. And every place that lost its sound Became a home for root and wing. OutroAnd every place that lost its sound Became a home for root and wing.