Ocean's Children

Old Mother Ocean moaned and called,

"Where are my children all?"

And from far and near the wide world o'er

They answered their mother's call.

I am a drop of pearly dew

Decking the flowers at night;

But a sudden sunbeam changes me

To a flashing diamond bright.

I am a shower of summer rain,

And within my drops I hold

An arching rainbow glorious

With sapphire, ruby, and gold.

And we are the snow and the icy hail;

By a law that the North Wind knows

He calls us to march in crystal ranks

Whenever his trumpet blows.

I am a spring like a mossy cup

Where the wild deer come to drink;

And I mirror the sky and feed the flowers

That blossom upon my brink.

And I am a rivulet leaping down

From my home on the green hillside

In a bright cascade with a shower of spray

Like a veil for a fairy bride.

And I am a river broad and strong;

A highway to the sea

I make for men, and they love me well,

For I serve them faithfully.

And we all are Ocean's children.

'T was the sun that lured us away.

We may wander far; she may wait us long,

But we 'll surely come home some day.