For Betty Birds were her children and they were her friends Coming from the distant ends Of the earth to reach her garden fair Where she heard opera from her chair Petted her cats and lived in peace Marking spring by flights of geese She did not hear well, had limited sight But she knew what was just and what was right She had the vision to pick the rare To cherish the beautiful, pure and fair And found these treasures not with the elite But in the garden at her feet In the song of birds, in the light filtered through The trees she loved, in morning dew In spring flowers and autumn seeds In shining stars and lowly weeds She had good fortune for she loved living Wasn’t needy, she preferred giving And when trains called to Betty Brown She smiled in her garden and turned them down The birds fly south, the flowers fade As if condolences were paid To the gentle lady in the green eye shade But Betty was part of Free Acres life As a child growing up, as Eddy Brown’s wife As Jane’s dear sister; as neighbor and friend We won’t see her walking round the bend Of Apple tree Row from the senior’s bus But she will still come back to us As long as Free Acres legends last Though now she belongs to our past She’s part of Free Acres and will be here The kindly lady who seemed to appear From a quieter time, a gentler year

For Jane She did not long for worldly things, money things, Jane Hall She’d tell us now to strive for peace, for love and warmth for all But who will show the babies flowers and who’ll prune wild trees Who will plant for others; for humming birds and bees? She said “George asked about the morning glories. He missed them quite a bit I’ll plant them by the tennis court where he likes to sit” She gathered leaves near meadow trees; gaily raked them up But Jane was special guardian of the buttercup We can plant blue morning glories by the tennis court Because the one who thought of us had her life cut short We can always keep the buttercups, let them live again Not mow until their petals fall let them live for Jane But if her courage and zest for life and uncomplaining ways Lead us like a golden light through all of our days If we let these lead like shining stars that break the dark till dawn Love nature and help others more, Janey will live on But who will show the babies flowers and who’ll prune wild trees Who will plant for others and for humming birds and bees? And can’t you somehow hear Jane’s voice telling you and me “Just keep some buttercups next spring near the sycamore tree Dear friends, leave some buttercups and remember me”