Disclaimer: Tolkien’s characters, not mine. Song is “When I grow too old to dream” by Sigmund Romburgh/Oscar Hammerstein II, 1934, for the play “The Night is Young”

“When I Grow Too Old to Dream”

When I grow too old to dream,

I’ll have you to remember.

Merry was agéd-his eyesight was almost gone and his hair had turned silver. He was dreaming - or remembering. It was much the same.

He was remembering his Estelle. How they met and loved in the springtime of their lives. They loved each other with the fearlessness of youth. Nothing or no one would ever separate them.

When I grow too old to dream,

Your love will live in my heart.

In the summer of their lives, there was love-and laughter. The love of a wife, the pure, simple love of their children; laughter of their children; laughter of beloved cousins. Love - always love remembered.

So kiss me, my sweet,

And so let us part.

He remembered his grief at Estelle’s passing. . She was still as beautiful as she was on her wedding day. Now, she was leaving him, going on her final journey. A journey he could not go on, not yet. He remembered their last kiss. She simply closed her eyes, and, with a sweet smile, breathed no more.

And When I grow too old to dream,

That kiss will live in my heart.

Yes, Merry remembered. He was ready to join his beloved Estelle. He knew she would be patiently waiting for him, with her laughing eyes. He could feel her lips on his. He quietly smiled, closed his eyes, and drew his last breath.