I REMEMBER, I REMEMBER.
I REMEMBER, I remember,
When first I saw a rink,
How fine to be a skater,
I always used to think,
To roll about, both in and out,
Through all the livelong day,
But now I wish the rink and skates
Had been far, far away.
I remember, I remember,
The skates that first I wore,
The joy I had in buying them,
That I shall have no more;
On being a great skater
My youthful heart was set—
Now the rink has gone the way of rinks;
The skates I have them yet.
I remember, I remember,
When first I had a fall,
How hard I found the asphalte,
How loudly I did bawl;
There was anguish in my bosom,
There was fever on my brow,
There were bruises on my body—
I bear the traces now.
I remember, I remember,
How oft from school I'd beg;
But my rinking days were over.
When at last I broke my leg.
It was a foolish fancy,
And now 'tis little joy,
To know I broke my fibula,
When I was a little boy.
Idyls of the Rink (Judd and Co., London, 1876).