david lessard (september fourteenth, nineteen forty-one / gardner, massachusetts)

A little while with joy and laughter, a little while with grief and pain,
A little while with sun and shadow, a little while with fog and rain.

A little while with summer's beauty, a little while with winter's cold,
A little while with springtime's magic, a little while with autumn's gold.

A little while with friends and family, a little while with folks we know,
A little while with loving people, a little while in their sweet, tender glow.

A little while with books and pictures, a little while with music's grace,
A little while with things we treasure, a little while in each and every place.

A little while to smell the flowers, a little while to do so very much,
A little while with thoughts we value, a little while within God's gracious touch.