Jos van Geffen --
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As a boy you knew the stables
As a lad you knew the fields
My son you worked beside me
But to country you must yield
Chorus
You were called to serve the country
You were called to serve the king
And from our home you left one day
And of this today I sing
When I stood there at the station
And our eyes one last time met
It was at that moment my dear son
T'is that I'll ne'er forget
Is it now a mother's blessing
That the country is truly free?
You gave your life for all of us
And all humanity
As I stand here at your grave side
And the spring birds sing their song,
My child I love you more and more
And will my whole life long
Chorus
You were called to serve the country
You were called to serve the king
And from our home you left one day
And of this today we sing
music: Loreena McKennitt
lyrics: Loreena McKennitt
From: Lost Souls (2018).
Source of the lyrics
The Quinlan Road website
with one correction by me based what Loreena sings
(1st stanza, line 4: "And" added);
and several periods were removed, as the lyrics has no punctuation.
The inspiration for this piece came to me during a visit to the Canadian National Vimy Memorial in France while reflecting on all who had perished there. In this song, I am reminded that all families mourn the loss of their loved one, and that loss transcends borders, cultures and time itself. The soldier's family mourns, the military 'family' mourns, and so does the community from which the soldier came.
Copied from the Quinlan Road website
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Jos van Geffen --
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