The Lavender Gate

[Intro]
[Verse]
Mountain mist was cold and white.
I left before the morning light.
The peak was falling out of sight.
I walked into the fading night.
With baskets full of purple bloom.
To chase away the winter gloom.
I felt the spirit of the room.
Wrapped inside a floral loom.
[Pre-Chorus]
The palace gates were open wide.
I felt a tiny spark inside.
Stained glass caught the dancing sun.
The royal fair had just begun.
[Chorus]
Oh, the gardener in the shade.
By the wall the masons made.
He looked up with a quiet smile.
I stood frozen for a while.
Just a nod across the stone.
Now I'm back here all alone.
[Post-Chorus]
Lavender and gold.
Memories to hold.
Glitter in the cold.
Stories never told.
[Verse]
The courtly ladies dressed in silk.
With skin as pale as morning milk.
They reached into my wicker tray.
To take the mountain scent away.
A copper coin for every bunch.
I ate a crust of bread for lunch.
The fountain ripples turned to glass.
As all the royal shadows pass.
[Pre-Chorus]
The celesta rang a hollow tune.
Beneath the pale and rising moon.
The cobblestones were dappled gold.
The secrets that the gardens hold.
[Chorus]
Oh, the gardener in the shade.
By the wall the masons made.
He looked up with a quiet smile.
I stood frozen for a while.
Just a nod across the stone.
Now I'm back here all alone.
[Bridge]
The French horn echoes in the air.
I saw him standing there.
His hands were dark with garden soil.
A life of quiet, honest toil.
I held my breath and turned away.
Nothing left for me to say.
The mountain calls me home again.
Far away from royal men.
[Chorus]
Oh, the gardener in the shade.
By the wall the masons made.
He looked up with a quiet smile.
I stood frozen for a while.
Just a nod across the stone.
Now I'm back here all alone.
[Outro]