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By night when others soundly slept
And hath at once both ease and Rest,
My waking eyes were open kept
And so to lie I found it best.
I sought him whom my Soul did Love,
With tears I sought him earnestly.
He bow'd his ear down from Above.
In vain I did not seek or cry.
My hungry Soul he fill'd with Good;
He in his Bottle put my tears,
My smarting wounds washt in his blood,
And banisht thence my Doubts and fears.
What to my Saviour shall I give
Who freely hath done this for me?
I'll serve him here whilst I shall live
And Love him to Eternity.
~ Anne Bradstreet
From the composer:
"This piece came out of a request from a choral director for a sacred work, and I decided I wanted to use a text that was not overly used and that was by a woman, which led me to Anne Bradstreet. I fell in love with these words and they immediately "sang" to me. I am also fascinated by her time in history (1600s puritan New England), and loved the flavor of that time period infused in the text."