If you should remove
Every tell-tale fingerprint from off the walls,
Then put the toys back on the shelf
As they were before,
Would my heart continue very well,
Just as an empty shell.
If you might hide away the memories
Each special photograph I kept,
And every memento
Over which I wept,
Would an abundance, stay within myself.
If you could take from me the singing
The laughter and the tears,
What pleasure would linger on
To cherish,
From all those precious years.
Would I still have some gladness left
My heart renewed by faithful prayer,
Could any amount of time
Or grievous losses,
Take from me, my care.
With all the years that disappear
Will they strip me of the hugs I loved,
My hopes and dreams of each one
Walking in their Father,
Who gives us all enough.
For if I softly close my eyes
All the lasting treasures still remain,
While with every breath I cradle yet
those tender hearts
And seek healing for their pain.
Then as I lift my sight beyond
I see them dancing out the door,
To once again return, to play upon that golden shore
And then how close we all will be,
Just like we were before.
