The Afternoon

[Verse 1]
How she loved the dawn's golden colors
Dressed on the tree-arched vestibule
Alone, she'd go out dancing
'Cross the quilt of morning dew
Had a soul for rising early
And a heart for leaving soon
Oh, how she loved the morning
So God took her in the afternoon

[Verse 2]
Her prayers spilled over earth and water
Kissed the snow fields and climbed the hills
Cracked the mountains of Virginia
Touched the hem of Jesus' will
Yes, sweet daybreak was a lover
But he could not heal her wound
Oh, how she loved the morning
So God took her in the afternoon

[Bridge]
Today the wind's a little colder
The sun drifts 'cross a pallid sky
And the land is full of shadows
Cast by dark clouds passing by

[Verse 3]
In my dreams, I see her laughing
In the mist, she's still at play
So each morning, I go looking
For the child who could not stay
Now she fills the fallow green fields
With a memory-laced perfume
Oh, how she loved the morning
So God took her in the afternoon
Oh, how she loved the morning
So God took her in the afternoon