I sat up on the front porch
In an ancient rocking chair,
Talking to the lady, who,
For ages had lived there.
In the house besides ours–
Well, her name was Missus Wynn;
She was a lonesome widow
And she sometimes called me in
To share some homemade cookies
And to sit and talk a spell.
Respectful of my elders,
I was sure to mind her well.
We sat upon her front porch
And as frisky as a pup,
I babbled all my dazzling dreams
For when I’d be grown up.
She listened to my every word,
For that was Missus Wynn,
Never scoffing at the dreams
Of a child of ten.
I told her I’d be famous;
I would write a book someday,
And I’d be rich and travel
To some places far away.
Missus Wynn would smile a bit
Nodding now and then,
And talked to me—well, just as though,
I were not a child of ten.
One day, she said, “Oh Dearie!
Fame and wealth are surely nice,
But getting them is real hard work
And it sometimes takes a price.
There’s something in this whole world that
Means more than wealth and fame.
What is it?
Well, I’ll tell you child,
I won’t give it a name,
But someday when you’re grown up
And living far away,
You’ll find it and remember
What I said to you today.
You can’t buy it with money
And it doesn’t come with fame,
Its phony imitations may
Come visit now and then,
But when you learn its true worth,
You will treasure it and know
That it means more than anything
As worldly riches go!”
Well, of course, I grew up
And I wrote a book or two,
I found my mundane riches,
And sometimes thought I knew
The greatest quest in human life,
The greatest gift to own—
The greatest kind of happiness
That man has ever known.
But when I found the greatest gift,
Surpassing all of these,
I recalled dear Missus Wynn;
I knew she would be pleased
If she knew I’d found it and
Treasured its sweet worth—
For I had found true friendship,
The greatest gift on earth.
Sandra Lee Smith/around 1970s
