The leaf that budded green and grew
In the springtime when the world was new
Is growing old and changing now
From green to gold.

And all the shoes that shuffle through town
Drum a lullaby to lay the autumn down.
It's a tune that falls, diminishing,
And then resolves.

So this is the way the year ends:
Not with a bang, with a sigh.
The summer sun, once young and wild,
Is a little wiser and his eyes are tired;
He nods his head mid-afternoon
And then he's off to bed.

So while the days are ripe and sweet
We heap them up in baskets at our feet
And do our best to use them well,
Cause they won't last.

And now the earth is prepared for her burial
Under snow upon snow.
And we wait and we wait for a miracle,
For the green fields to grow.

And this is the way the year ends:
With a sigh.
Goodbye, old friend.

Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye.

The leaf that budded green and grew
In the springtime when the world was new
Lets go at last
And settles in the withered grass.