BARB BROOKS -"Only in Sleep" by Eriks Ešenvalds

BARB BROOKS - CHORALE ARTISTIC ADVISOR & PIANIST

"Only in Sleep" by Eriks Ešenvalds

I love Esenvalds in general but I really love this piece (we sang it at First Unitarian Society), as I feel it is so poignant in how it deals with loss and memory, and how it describes time being forgotten in sleep and dreams. It really speaks to me during this crisis as I have been reliving my life and all the beautiful memories of people, places, and life experiences I encountered and am so grateful for.
 
 
Only in sleep I see their faces,
Children I played with when I was a child,
Louise comes back with her brown hair braided,
Annie with ringlets warm and wild.

Only in sleep Time is forgotten--
What may have come to them, who can know?
Yet we played last night as long ago,
And the doll-house stood at the turn of the stair.

The years had not sharpened their smooth round faces,
I met their eyes and found them mild--
Do they, too, dream of me, I wonder,
And for them am I too a child?
 
--Sara Teasdal