I’ve seen her here before, the beauty Abileen,
With silken hair and laughing eyes, she plays with friends unseen,
And watching now again from behind a crooked tree,
She lifts her gaze until it lifts to me.
Oh what a treasure that has n’er before been seen,
This graceful gem whom I call Abileen,
A horse with auburn golden coats and quickness too,
She dances ‘cross meadows of grass hung high with dew.
And now I creep along a fence with fallen timber,
I catch my breath for fear of body’s hinder,
That this meeting in this field where daisies grow,
Should remain a memory my mind will never know.
Clouds drift across the purple morning sky,
No fear of my approach, she does not shy,
I touch her silken mane from where I stand,
She eats an apple from my trembling hand.