Childhood smile

In childhood days a smile comes easy,

Laughter's fun; so happy breezy,

Daylight hours, nothing's wrong,

Always sing your carefree song.

Smile, little one! The chance is here,

Smile quick! Feel darkness drawing near,

Darkness, a thief to steal your smile ...

Give you a tear to cry a while.

Once childhood's gone, there's no return,

To bring a smile you have to learn.

The lesson's hard, the road is long,

The smiles that come are frowns gone wrong.

Take one wise word as you grow old:

Don't let your heart become too cold,

See tear-stained cheeks where once a smile

Dimpled the face of one small child.

The smile he wears is not a fake,

His smile will cause your heart to break.

Remember when we were so small,

And our smiles meant we had it all?