The Gathering

The newspaper headlines were big and bold;
Our country was going to war
To fight for the freedom of nationhood
To defend us from invading hordes

The general pointed with steely glare
Delivered the rallying call
We signed off our lives with a stroke of a pen
Joined our pals in the line
We took the King’s shilling with pride

From the towns and the cities we came
From the fields and the countryside
The mines and the factories
Volunteers on the square, labourers and unemployed
Clerks and delivery boys

Skirling pipes charge the air, raising the cheering crowd
Casting out any doubts
Victory will soon be assured
We know God’s on our side at the heart of the gathering

Farewell to our homes and our families
Farewell to the lives we once knew
Farewell to our youth and our innocence
We marched off with the band to the promise of a brave new world

And I’ll write you a letter each passing day
And I’ll cherish your every reply
I’ll tie them with ribbons and Flanders lace;
Hold them close to my heart in a sweet embrace

Tell the children that I shall return
Laden with medals and dripping with garlands
We’ll sit by the banks of the Tyne
And I’ll regale you with stories of honour and glory

We’ll make up for all the lost time, jig to the fiddles
And weave the White Willow
In the evening like ferns we’ll entwine
Our bodies surrender we give to the gathering

I’ll long for my home and my family
I will long for the life I once knew
I’ll long for my youth and my innocence
I’ll long for a brave new world

In the holds of the ships out of training camps
From the railheads to trudge open roads
Shouldered rifles on heavy souls
Our fears will add to our load

Farewell to our homes and our families
Farewell to the lives we once knew
Farewell to our youth and our innocence
We marched off with the band
Pals in battalions to the promise of a brave new world

Joining the gathering
Pals in battalions to fight for a brave new world
Pals in battalions, we took the King’s shilling
And paid for a brave new world