A Welcome for Winter

I.

A welcome for Winter! Though summer shall fade,
There is joy on the prairies her bounties have made,
And the Land of the Sunshine all happiness knows
Through the days of the shadows and nights of the snows!

II.

A welcome for Winter! What matters the cold
Which the harvest has warmed with the russet and gold?
All the valleys of plenty shall laugh through the white
Of the snow-laden day and the storm-ridden night.

III.

A welcome for Winter! Though June, rosy-red,
Has plucked all her blossoms and frightened far fled,
There are hives with their honeys and granaries sweet,
And the fiddles of music with spring for the feet!

IV.

A welcome for Winter! If far from the days
All the lilies have gone from the violet ways,
There is joy that will dance o'er the meadows and sing,
Where the carols of plenty their blessedness bring.

V.

Then, ho, for the Winter! There's love on the hills,
There is laughter and peace by the ice-covered rills,
And the hearts shall rejoice in the songs that arise
In the raptures that roll under storm-laden skies!