You were born in the shade of a golden age

That was gilded with the blood of slaves

And though you never let on your life begun

In a world haunted by a million graves
.

You made corned beef hash on Mondays 

And you rode to our house on the bus

And though I know you felt we were lazy and spoilt

Still you never made a fuss

.
I suppose your wisdom was in what you didn’t say 

And in your quiet, careful love

For you never forgot a birthday

Or the names of the ones we loved

.

You were often overlooked at parties

Though you didn’t seem to mind

You sat alone with your favorite drink

Thinking of earlier times

.
I wonder what you made of what the world became 

In a century of accelerating change

I wonder if it touched you much at all

For you always seemed the same

.
I think I’ll remember you most of all 

For those quiet winter nights

When I drove you home

In the artificial light

.
I used to ask you questions about the past

About what it was like for you as a girl

But you never gave me very much

I think we came from different worlds
.

And I’d come inside for a cup of tea

To your cosy little flat

We would watch a game show on TV

And that was the end of that

.
I suppose I never really knew you

But that’s no reason to be downcast

For the thing that counts is I had no doubt 

Of your love until the last.