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Leaves and Shields

Oft'times I see my friends all 'round
Lke leaves of Autumn, floating down
And softly drifting, side-to-side
A passive dance, on zephryn tide

Then when the ground is covered o'er
A million leaves! A billion! More!
Each leaf contributes its full size
Then, on a stormy gust, they rise

'Til once again back to the groung
With only a faint rustling sound
They cover Earth like coats of paint
And never from them one complaint

For leaves, it seems, were bor to fall
In answer to their maker's call
So, after their day in the sun
They pay the piper, ev'ry one

God's peple, too, could learn fom them
We hang by life=thread, very slim
We live our lives as we see fit
While kowng there's an end to it

That thresd will tretc, but one day break
Then ev'ry triumph ad mistake
Will only be a memory
That's shared by friends and family

Our mem'ries are like building stones
That shield us from the tears and groans
A pebble here, a bolder there
The joys we could together share

Wallsgrow thick, and shields grow strong
A  love, and lift, and help along
Each one who shares this life with us
The ones wo give to us their trust

And as we journey toward our home
It's never good to be alone
That thread may break at any time
And end our Earthly pantomime

Life's Earthly gain (and this we know)
Will wash away in time's great flow
Just gifts we've made and good we've done
Will keep our mem'ries in the sun

To shied our loved ones from the storm
Reflect sunshine to keep them warm
'Til each must turn the river's  bend
We never know just how or when

So nw, dear friends, my point of view
Theere's just one thing for us to do
Please build a shield for me, will you?
I'll build, the best I can, for you
Walls grow thick

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