Come when the nights are bright with stars
Or when the moon is mellow;
Come when the sun his golden bars
Drops on the hay-field yellow.
Come in the twilight soft and gray,
Come in the night or come in the day,
Come, O love, when'er you may,
And you are welcome, welcome.
Come when my heart is full of grief
Or when my heart is merry;
Come with the falling of the leaf
Or with the redd'ning cherry.
Come when the year's first blossom blows
Come when the summer gleams and glows,
Come with the winter's drifting snows,
And you are welcome, welcome.
-Paul Laurence Dunbar-
