The halls were dark; the room was sad
And yet it was all the home that I had
The quarters were close, the stairs were steep
The snows of winter were ever so deep...
But in the garden the lilac bloomed
And spring came early to my little room,
When it's purple petals fluttered down to the ground
And its fragrance dispelled the gloom all around
My soul soared up to meet the sky
The beauty and hope of the lilac were mine.