Not Lost But Gone Before

Once, only once, upon a time,
We heard the bells of faerie chime,
And through the golden nights and days
They sang their Elfin roundelays.
The world and we were in our prime
Once, only once, upon a time.

Has Fairyland for ever flown?
– The darkness falls on me alone,
For on my sweet companion’s eyes
There shines the light of Paradise.
The heights of joy I cannot climb
As we did once upon a time.

Oh, loved one of the far away,
I know that we shall meet some day,
And once again walk hand in hand
Through all the realms of Fairyland.
And Heaven’s own harps around us chime,
As they did – once upon a time!

Prose, Poems & Parodies of Percy French, 1980, Helicon Limited, Dublin.