I wrote this to my sister, Janice Brady Maxwell, to commemorate her birthday the year that we at Emmanuel College together. In those days, sewing was an art generally taught to young women by their mothers. Janice could make anything so I gave her some cloth to make a dress. On the date I sent her the same.
60 YEARS AGO
SOMETIMES I PONDER THE YEARS GONE BY, AND WHERE THEY ALL DID GO,
AND I CAN’T SEEM TO FIND A SINGLE THING, FROM SIXTY YEARS AGO.
I LOOK IN THE CHURCH, IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD,
EVEN IN THE PICTURE SHOW,
BUT NEVER DO I SEE ONE THING,
FROM SIXTY YEARS AGO.
WHAT WAS RIGHT BACK THEN IS NOW ALL WRONG,
WHAT IS FAST BACK THEN IS NOW SLOW,
I JUST CAN’T UNDERSTAND HOW IT ALL HAS CHANGED,
FROM SIXTY YEARS AGO.
BUT THEN I THINK, WITH A HUMEROUS VIEW,
ABOUT A TIME I THINK YOU’LL KNOW,
THAT WILL MAKE YOU GIGGLE A LITTLE BIT,
ABOUT SIXTY YEARS AGO.
WE WERE FRESHMEN IN COLLEGE AND MARCH WAS DRAWING NIGH,
I WAS PACING TO AND FRO,
BECAUSE MARCH WAS VERY SPECIAL, AS IT STILL IS TODAY,
JUST LIKE SIXTY YEARS AGO.
WHAT COULD I DO FOR THIS SPECIAL EVENT,
AND WITH A BRAIN STORM I SAID, “I KNOW”,
I’LL THROW A BIRTHDAY PARTY FOR MY PRECIOUS SIS,
AND I DID IT SIXTY YEARS AGO.
SO I GATHERED SOME FRIENDS AROUND ME,
WHO REALLY WERE IN THE KNOW,
ABOUT HOW TO MAKE MY SIS HAPPY,
SIXTY YEARS AGO.
BUT A PARTY NEEDS A BIRTHDAY GIFT,
AND WITH EMPTY POCKETS WHERE WOULD I GO,
I DID GET A FEW QUARTERS TOGETHER, THOUGH,
SIXTY YEARS AGO.
THIS GIFT I HAVE SENT YOU IS NOT MUCH YOU SEE,
BUT I HOPE IT WILL STIR MEMORIES AGLOW,
ABOUT A SPECIAL, PRECIOUS TIME IN OUR LIVES,
SIXTY YEARS AGO.jwb
60 YEARS AGO
SOMETIMES I PONDER THE YEARS GONE BY, AND WHERE THEY ALL DID GO,
AND I CAN’T SEEM TO FIND A SINGLE THING, FROM SIXTY YEARS AGO.
I LOOK IN THE CHURCH, IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD,
EVEN IN THE PICTURE SHOW,
BUT NEVER DO I SEE ONE THING,
FROM SIXTY YEARS AGO.
WHAT WAS RIGHT BACK THEN IS NOW ALL WRONG,
WHAT IS FAST BACK THEN IS NOW SLOW,
I JUST CAN’T UNDERSTAND HOW IT ALL HAS CHANGED,
FROM SIXTY YEARS AGO.
BUT THEN I THINK, WITH A HUMEROUS VIEW,
ABOUT A TIME I THINK YOU’LL KNOW,
THAT WILL MAKE YOU GIGGLE A LITTLE BIT,
ABOUT SIXTY YEARS AGO.
WE WERE FRESHMEN IN COLLEGE AND MARCH WAS DRAWING NIGH,
I WAS PACING TO AND FRO,
BECAUSE MARCH WAS VERY SPECIAL, AS IT STILL IS TODAY,
JUST LIKE SIXTY YEARS AGO.
WHAT COULD I DO FOR THIS SPECIAL EVENT,
AND WITH A BRAIN STORM I SAID, “I KNOW”,
I’LL THROW A BIRTHDAY PARTY FOR MY PRECIOUS SIS,
AND I DID IT SIXTY YEARS AGO.
SO I GATHERED SOME FRIENDS AROUND ME,
WHO REALLY WERE IN THE KNOW,
ABOUT HOW TO MAKE MY SIS HAPPY,
SIXTY YEARS AGO.
BUT A PARTY NEEDS A BIRTHDAY GIFT,
AND WITH EMPTY POCKETS WHERE WOULD I GO,
I DID GET A FEW QUARTERS TOGETHER, THOUGH,
SIXTY YEARS AGO.
THIS GIFT I HAVE SENT YOU IS NOT MUCH YOU SEE,
BUT I HOPE IT WILL STIR MEMORIES AGLOW,
ABOUT A SPECIAL, PRECIOUS TIME IN OUR LIVES,
SIXTY YEARS AGO.jwb