FAREWELL TO THE OLD SCHOOL-HOUSE
by Rozelle V. Myers-Funnell
They are bearing the forms away, Allie,
The dear old house is condemned;
Let us go and say a sad farewell,
As we would to a cherished friend.
Let us stand for a last, last time, Allie,
In the shade of the grey stone wall,
And dream one dream of the joyous past,
As the twilight shadows fall.
Remembrance brings us a sketch, Allie,
From the beautiful long ago,
When life was a cloudless summer morn,
Aflush with a crimson glow.
And down through the golden years, Allie,
Comes floating a faultless chime,
A drifting of sweetest memories
From the happy childhood time.
Faces we cannot forget, Allie,
Smile on us again, as of yore;
And voices, silent for many a year,
Ring in through the open door.
Anon to our listening ears, Allie,
In silvery tones, they bring
Even the old familiar rhymes,
And the songs we used to sing.
Bright forms that drooped in our sight, Allie,
With a well-remembered grace,
Come back once more to our out-stretched arms,
And are held in a close embrace,
Small, dimpled hands clasp ours, Allie,
That long we have sought in vain;
They lead us o’er many a well-known path,
Down many a moss-grown lane.
The turf is as soft and green, Allie,
The blue dome above as fair,
The air as fragrant with dewy flowers,
And our hearts as free from care
As when, with our child-eyes veiled, Allie,
From sin, and sorrow and woe,
We could see the flashing of Angels’ wings
And hear their whispers low.
And the violets bloom again, Allie,
As they did in the days gone by;
And heaven seems just as near as then,
Afloat in the sunny sky.
A dream? Ah! Yes, ’tis a dream, Allie,
Of the olden childhood bliss;
But who would not give, of the life we live,
Whole years, for one hour like this.
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