Now war is over and a world set free,
And youth returns, triumphant, to our land--
And dear-heart, you'll be coming back to me,
With eager-lips, and tender outstretched hand!
You will be coming as you came of old,
At evening time, with laughter lilting gay;
Glad of the little things that life may hold--
And I will meet you in the self same way....
Yes, in the shadows by my oaken door,
I will be waiting as I used to wait--
And I will feel that you are come, before
I hear the clicking of the garden gate.
And, in the darkness there, my pulse will leap,
Reviving dreams that long have lain asleep!
