When Mother Reads Aloud

When Mother reads aloud,

the past seems real as every day;
I hear the tramp of armies vast,
I see the spears and lances cast,
I join the thrilling fray.
Brave knights and ladies fair and proud I meet
when Mother reads aloud.

When Mother reads aloud,
far lands seem very near and true;
I cross the deserts gleaming sands,
or hunt the jungles prowling bands,
or sail the ocean blue.
Far heights, whose peaks the cold mists shroud, I scale,
When Mother reads aloud.

When Mother reads aloud,
I long for noble deeds to do-
to help the right,
redress the wrong;
it seems so easy to be strong,
so simple to be true.
Oh, thick and fast the visions crowd my eyes,
When Mother reads aloud.

-Author Unknown