It took a baby’s death to bring us
here,
It took that agony of heart and
mind;
It took a mother, helpless, lost
and blind
Inside her grief, her loneliness,
her fear;
It took compassion trying to come
near;
It took an answer to that need
behind
The isolation, poverty and grind
Of country women scattered far and
near.
All that was long ago - yet still
it seems
Kind laughter is a bridge across
despair,
Calm friendship is a shelter in
the night.
This is the stuff of happy
birthday dreams,
This is the kernel of the whole
affair:
It took a baby’s death, this candlelight.
(March,
1991)
- to celebrate Hanley Castle
W.I.’s 70th year.
