Hew Morrison Collection > Celtic garland

MY HIELAN' HAME.
I canna leave my Hielan' hame,
Nor a' the clans that bear my name,
I canna leave the bonnie glen,
Nor a' I lo'e nor a' I ken,
For what would this poor heart then do,
Gin it would lose its worth I trow Ì
Flowers may bloom fair yont the sea.
But oh ! my Hielan' hame for me.
My faither sleeps beneath the sod,
My mither shares his cauld abode,
Yon sunny shielin' on the brae
Has oft heard sounds o' grief and wae,
And I, its tenant, left alane.
Lamenting o'er the days lang gane.
Flowers may bloom fair yont the sea.
But oh ! my Hielan' hame for me.
They tell me I'll get wealth and ease,
Wi' nocht tae vex but a' tae please.
They tell me I'll get gold and fame.
They tempt me wi' a glorious name —
But what can a' their wealth impart
To me who has a broken heart Ì
Flowers my bloom fair yont the sea.
But oh ! my Hielan' hame for me.
Each flower that blooms on foreign fell
Would mind me o' my heather bell.
Each little streamlet, nook or turn,
Would mind me o' Glenorick's burn —
How can I leave a scene so dear
Without a sigh, ^vithout a tear^
Flowers may bloom fair yont the sea,
But oh ! my Hielan' hame for me.