O light the candle, John
The daylight has almost gone
The birds have sung their last
The bells call all to massSit here by my side
For the night is very long
There's something I must tellBefore I pass alongI joined the brotherhood My books were all to me
I scribed the words of GodAnd much of historyMany a year was IPerched out upon the sea
The waves would wash my tears,
The wind, my memoryI'd hear the ocean breathe
Exhale upon the shore
I knew the tempest's bloodIts wrath I would endureAnd so the years went by
Within my rocky cell
With only a mouse or bird
My friend; I loved them wellAnd so it came to pass
I'd come here to Romani
And many a year it took
Till I arrived here with theeOn dusty roads I walked
And over mountains high
Through rivers running deep
Beneath the endless skyBeneath these jasmine flowers
Amidst these cypress trees
I give you now my books
And all their mysteriesNow take the hourglass
And turn it on its head
For when the sands are still
'Tis then you'll find me deadO light the candle, John
The daylight is almost gone
The birds have sung their last
The bells call all to mass