Five White Tigers

Five White Tigers
She was 8 years old
But her eyes were so much older
Her unwashed face
Red hair down to her shoulders
She never held her tongue in public places
She had no need to hide her thoughts
At Christmas all that she wanted was
Five white tigers
The year she fell ill
They put her in a room with one tv
With lots of cards
With lots of flowers and lots of cards
An' when I found out
I was in a working camp
Up in northern ontario
An' as the flies bit in
I dreamt of five white tigers
She was 8 years old
But her eyes were so much older
Her unwashed face
Red hair down to her shoulders
As years went by
There were parts of her that never recovered
But at Christmas all that she asked for was
Five white tigers