On the cliff of chalky white stone by the sea On a sunny day, by the old white house The house with the gauzy curtains, And the seaglass on the windowsill You’re standing on the grass looking out at the water From the same spot where you used to stand

You remember how it was back then Sixty years ago, growing up here a mile out from the small town, When you’d look out on a day like today, The sea blue, the sun bright, and the grass green beneath you, And think about how your life would go

You’re standing here, the sea just as it was, The sky and sun and soft white clouds remain, So many years later, it’s so familiar, and yet so strange, After all that’s happened, and how much you’ve changed, how everything here has stayed the same

Sometimes you’d take a canvas out And sometimes you’d just stand and watch the gulls above, And the waves lapping the base of the cliff below A slight breeze ruffling your white dress And the branches of the spruce trees down the hill Those were quiet days

Now today, you can see Your memory standing before you Looking out over the sea You reach out to touch – you have something to say, you’re not sure what – But there’s no one really there