You wind in and out between the green,

Flowing along with your globular curves,

Your limits are all virtually unseen,

I like your sharp bends and your swerves

Water gushes through your liquid being,

Sometimes serene and at times irate,

You can be portly and can also be lean,

You do have to deal with a capricious fate

You are so much to so many beings,

There are some that depend on you most,

You can be the playground for insouciant teens,

And for some you carry away paper-boats

Men created civilizations around you,

You watched an old generation beget new,

You have seen parlays and wars ensue,

And you have always been there, haven't you?

You are a dwelling for animal life,

Frogs, apes and otters reside in your wakes,

Upon your comely banks, a man has found a wife,

You are also a home to colossal snakes!

A rill branching off from your main course,

Is like a hair strand upon the face of a woman,

I want to explore that tiny rill up close,

And watch that ecosystem thrive under the sun.

In your paradise also await horrors,

Like piranhas and deadly mosquitoes,

Its like Tartarus for mere mortals,

But that's a part of you, as far as it goes.

People have always explored your depths,

White men spending their lifetimes getting a tan,

But you still do hold some virgin forests,

That are untouched and still not known to man.

The people who call you home are happy,

They have led their lives holding your hand,

A simple, natural life, nothing fancy,

You give them all without demand.

You spread yourself with much temerity,

But you shaped the life of some man called Leo

Your stories will all stretch till posterity,

I thank you for being with us, Rio.