Three ships
Language: English
Three ships there be a-sailing Between the sea and sky; And one is "Now," and one is "Then," And one is "By and By." The first little ship is all for you; Its masts are gold and its sails are blue, And this is the cargo it brings: Joyful days with sunlight glowing; Nights where dreams like stars are growing; Take them, sweet, or they'll be going, For they ev'ry one have wings! The second ship it is all for me, A-sailing on a misty sea, And out across a twilight gray. What it brought of give and blessing Would not stay for my caressing, Was too dear for my posessing, So it sails and sails away. The last ship floating far and hight Upon the sea is "By and By," O wind, be kind, and gently blow! Not too swiftly hasten hither; When she turns, sweet, you'll go with her, Sailing, floating hither thither, To what port I may not know. Three ships there be a-sailing Between the sea and sky; And one is "Now," and one is "Then," And one is "By and By."
Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Margaret Ruthven Lang (1867 - 1972), "Three ships", op. 39 (Songs for Lovers of Children) no. 8 [ voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Nich Roehler
This text was added to the website: 2012-05-20
Line count: 29
Word count: 186