Lyrics:

This was a modified version of a 1908 song by Ada Habershon and Charles Gabriel, and is a story about the death and funeral of the protagonist’s mother.
I was standin' by the window
On one cold and cloudy day
And I saw the hearse come rollin'
For to carry my mother away

Oh, can the circle be unbroken?
By and by, Lord, by and by
There's a better home awaiting
In the sky, Lord, in the sky


Lord, I told the undertaker
'Undertaker, please drive slow
For this body you are hauling
Lord, I hate to see her go'

Can the circle be unbroken?
By and by, Lord, by and by
There's a better home awaiting
In the sky, Lord, in the sky

I followed close behind her
Tried to hold up and be brave
But I could not hide my sorrow
When they laid her in the grave

Can the circle be unbroken?
By and by, Lord, by and by
There's a better home awaiting
In the sky, Lord, in the sky

Went back home, Lord, my home was lonesome
Since my mother, she was gone
All my brothers, sisters cryin'
What a home so sad and lone

Can the circle be unbroken?
By and by, Lord, by and by
There's a better home awaiting
In the sky, Lord, in the sky