Once upon a time
I fell in love with a sunrise,
Glows of gold glisten behind the clouds
Its beauty and its new beginning,
Its light and the growing of day,
But now it is night.

    And once upon a time,
I fell in love with a morning bird,
Its singing and its laughing,
Caw-caw-calling to a friend,
Flying in frantic flashes of feathers
And still it is night.

    Once upon a time,
I fell in love with a child,
Its innocence and its joy,
Its smiling playfulness.
The child grew up,
And yet it is still night.

    And once upon a time,
I fell in love with you, beloved,
Your light and your singing,
Your smile and your innocence,
And like them, you are not here.
And still is the night.

    But night is not long, love,
The sun comes back, the bird sings again,
The child within me lives still.
And so I wait in patient trust
For God to bring you also back.
And it will not be night.

    For of all His wondrous gifts,
You, my love, are the most precious,
And night will disappear.

                            October 1981