by Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872 - 1906)
Growing gray
Language: English
Hello, ole man, you're a-gittin' gray, An' it beats ole Ned to see the way 'At the crow's feet's a-getherin' aroun' yore eyes; Tho' it oughtn't to cause me no su'prise, Fur there's many a sun 'at you've seen rise An' many a one you've seen go down Sence yore step was light an' yore hair was brown, An' storms an' snows have had their way -- Hello, ole man, you're a-gittin' gray. Hello, ole man, you're a-gittin' gray, An' the youthful pranks 'at you ust to play Are dreams of a far past long ago That lie in a heart where the fires burn low -- That has lost the flame tho' it kept the glow, An' spite of drivin' snow an' storm, Beats bravely on forever warm. December holds the place of May -- Hello, ole man, you're a-gittin' gray. Hello, ole man, you're a-gittin' gray -- Who cares what the carpin' youngsters say? For, after all, when the tale is told, Love proves if a man is young or old! Age cannot make the heart grow cold When it does the will of an honest mind; When it beats with love for all mankind; An' the night but leads to a fairer day -- Hello, ole man, you're a-gittin' gray!
Authorship:
- by Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872 - 1906), appears in Majors and Minors, first published 1895 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Gary Bachlund (b. 1947), "Growing gray", 2012 [ medium voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2017-11-13
Line count: 27
Word count: 208