All the Pretty Lights

Out there in the darkness
Just beyond my reach
Broken little parts of
A faded memory
Three pyjama’d brothers
Cross-legged on the floor
Arguing which of us wanted
Christmas to come more

The playroom door swings open
In come Mum and Dad
They sit down on the sofa
I get up on Mum’s lap
We’re flying down to London town
Now what do you think of that!

And I saw all the pretty lights shining
I looked at all the pretty lights out there
I thought of all the other kids
And if they felt the way I did
And I could feel my little heart beating
So many questions running through my mind
As I looked at those pretty lights shining

The family in the Big Smoke
Snow and taxi cabs
Was there snow? I don’t know
It’s all mixed up with Peter Pan
Oh battleships and waxworks
Pantomimes, museums
And finally on Regent Street
The toy shop of my dreams!

Everybody grows up
Things can’t stay the same
What I’d give just to relive
A single hour again
Childhood’s lost forever now
But childish joy remains

When I see all the pretty lights shining
Just look at all the pretty lights out there
Check out the faces on the kids
They’re feeling the way you once did
And I can feel my aged heart beating
The terror and excitement intertwine
When I look at those pretty lights shining
I’m cross-legged on the floor
At Christmas time