My child, my comfort, you’re going off
To be a proper son
I say goodbye with tears and cries,
Your loving, faithful mother.
You cross, my child, my only child,
A river wide, an ocean.
Oh, come back soon, and in good health
And don’t forget your mama.
Oh travel safe, and with good luck,
And send a letter every week
To mend your mama’s broken heart.

Chorus:
A little letter to your mama,
Above all don’t forget to send her.
Write with haste, darling child,
Tell her how you’re doing.
Your mama will read every letter,
And she’ll feel so much better.
Heal her pain, her bitter heart
Soothe her soul and write her.

For eight long years I’ve been alone,
My child has swum the ocean.
His childish heart is hard as stone
Not one word has he written.
How is my child, I must be brave,
Is his new life a happy one?
It must be going very well,
For he has told me nothing.
I’ve written him a hundred times,
And I’ve received not one reply,
My grief grows deeper every day.

(chorus)