Irish 4/6: The Magic Ring. ISRC-CB-GWT-26-00308

[Male] I have no time to go looking for love, No time to be swept by desire. A few more months, then I'll leave this place, Back to the world where careers require A job to pursue, a future to build— I tell myself love must wait. But the way you welcomed me into your world Has begun to alter my fate. Your parents' kindness changed my thinking, Your honest heart kept me from flight. Each evening you sat and studied beside me, While I worked on my future late into the night. One day I peeled an orange for you, But the juice ran over your hands. You laughed, then peeled one neatly for me— And love began without a plan. [Female] When he hung up his laboratory coat, I put on my apron and cooked. Thai curry chicken, vegetable dumplings— He smiled at the meal and the way that it looked. A man who could work and share a good dinner— What more could a girl ask for? But the job market tightened around us, And Montreal was calling once more. [Duet] A little orange, a little time, A quiet meal, a hopeful sign. No grand confession, no vow to make— Just two hearts learning what love might take. A little closer, day by day, Though work and distance stood in the way. Would we hold on when we had to part, Or leave our promise to a waiting heart? [ Female] Eight months in Montreal lay before me; Would he remember me when I was gone? Would thoughts of his future crowd out my memory? Would our small beginning keep going on? I met my mentor, the chairman's wife, And she spoke to me quietly one day. "If he means to keep you in his future, Perhaps a ring will help him find his way." [ Male] We shared a family dinner, coupons in hand, Roast chicken and apple pie. Before you could take your first bite of dessert, I had something I wanted to try. I placed a sapphire ring before you: "Take this to remember me. It's a token of friendship between us, For the months when we're apart, you see." [Duet] With the waitress watching, we whispered together; You took the ring with a smile. I had brought you a promise of friendship— But your eyes held something beyond that awhile. You had prepared no gift to give me, No keepsake to send me away. Yet something was waiting between us, Something neither had dared to say. [ Female] Beneath the dim moon, before we parted, I asked you to close your eyes. I had no ring, no words rehearsed, Just a feeling I could no longer disguise. I kissed you softly upon your lips; My face grew warm in the night. {cont'd under comments}

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