The Greenhouse in November

Lyrics

Frost has come to the garden wall
And the last of the leaves let go
But the glass house holds a little summer
In the pots all in a row
I carry in the lemon tree
With its three small fruits of green
And I tuck the tender seedlings
Where the cold has never been

Oh, the greenhouse in November
Keeps a patient kind of light
Every window fogged with breathing
Every shelf a small delight
When the world outside is turning
Grey and bare along the lane
There's a warm and waiting corner
Where the green comes back again

I sit upon an upturned crate
With my tea gone lukewarm, slow
There's a spider in the rafters
Spinning silver, row by row
The geraniums are sleeping
And the rosemary stands tall
And the quiet hums around me
Like a song without a call

Oh, the greenhouse in November
Keeps a patient kind of light
Every window fogged with breathing
Every shelf a small delight
When the world outside is turning
Grey and bare along the lane
There's a warm and waiting corner
Where the green comes back again

And I think of all the seasons
When I hurried through the days
Never stopped to watch a seedling
Lean toward the morning's rays
Now I know that waiting's working
In a way you cannot see
Roots go down in the dark
Before they ever reach for me

So I'll pull my woollen collar close
And I'll water, one by one
Every little hopeful promise
Of a spring that's yet to come
The dusk is coming early
And the pane is turning blue
But the lemon tree is glowing
And I'm glowing with it too

Oh, the greenhouse in November
Keeps a patient kind of light
Every window fogged with breathing
Every shelf a small delight
When the world outside is turning
Grey and bare along the lane
There's a warm and waiting corner
Where the green comes back again

Where the green comes back again
Where the green comes back again