The Cottage on the Hill

Struggle Through the wind so sharp and cold With my head held low Along the winding track I tread Through autumn leaves that blow The path is steep and muddy now, The icy rain so chill; I shield my face against the storm, I gasp - so steep the hill. The wind is howling through the trees, The branches creak and sway; I hear the rooks scream and screech - Their fear and wrath display. ‘Tis darker now and bitter cold, It starts to pour again; And through the mist I dimly see The cottage in the rain. Along the path I trudge, so scared, And reach the cottage gate; Memories past now flood my mind, Events that sealed my fate. Many years have passed me by, Once a youth naïve - In trouble then, in trouble now, And for my past I grieve. My life was spent in years now past, In matters quite depraved; In gaol I’ve been and homeless then - To crime, I was enslaved. Encounter The door is swinging back and forth - Inside is cold and damp; And up the creaking stairs I climb - Holding high my lamp. Outside his room, in fear and dread, My mind is numb and blank; I pause - so tense - but in I step, Inside – so foul, so dank. I see my father on his bed - Through shadows dark and bleak; Up he stares, he sees me there, He looks both pale and weak. I’m here to right my many wrongs, From long, so long ago; My father weak, bereft, distressed, I’m sad to see him so Reconciliation “My son!” he chokes – “‘Tis you! ‘Tis you!” A feeble rasp, so frail; Many years of mem’ries dour - Now do my mind impale. So calm is he and tranquil too, My father smiles at me; He wheezes, coughs then breathes his last, At rest, but yet so free. Now by his bed I stand ashamed, For him - his life deprived; Now by his bed I stand absolved, For me - my life revived. Enlightenment Many years have passed since then, A preacher now - so proud; As by the cottage gate I stand, A place that God endowed! A smile of welcome now I give, To all who gather here; My beloved congregation for……. The Chapel on the Hill