Zoe Mulford: Music
Answer the Knock at the Door
The candles are bright and the fire is warm We’re safe from the cold and the night and the storm Within our four walls there is comfort and cheer So toast our good fortune and bless the new year As we raise our glasses – a knock at the door A rude interruption that we could ignore The table is laid, but there’s still room for more So answer the knock at the door And welcome the late-comer lost on the road Who comes unannounced after so long abroad And welcome the prodigal, proud and outcast Who comes in repentance for bitterness past Welcome the traveller with tales to be told Welcome the neighbor whose hearth has grown cold Welcome the refugee, hungry and poor The table is laid but there’s still room for more So answer the knock at the door And as we are gathered with family and friends We long for the ones who will not come again But leave no glass untasted and no chair unfilled When we gather in love, they are all with us still So welcome the joyful and those who still mourn And the bride and the groom and the child newborn The circle’s complete, but there’s still room for more So answer the knock at the door Within our four walls there is comfort and cheer So toast our good fortune and bless the new year And should we be rich or should we be poor May we always get up for the knock at the door The table is laid but there’s plenty for more So answer the knock at the door Answer the knock at the door