My boyfriend's father built this waterwheel on the grist mill at Longfellow's Wayside Inn in South Sudbury, MA about 40 years ago.  We got to see it for the first time about a year ago and became friends with the miller who knew Sam's dad.  It has a special place in our hearts.  

 

The Mill, the Miller and the Man

There it stood up on the hill,
that mill from long ago;
The wheel bright red against the stone,
still turning smooth and slow.

The man had waited many years
to see the mill and wheel
his dad had built so long ago
with care and love and steel.

The miller met him at the door,
and quickly asked him in.
“I used to know your Dad,” he said,
and you look so much like him”.

The miller showed the man around,
from basement to top floor.
And even let him run the wheel
while the grain began to pour.

They walked the path along the race
and out to the old mill pond,
watching the water gently flow
over the wheel and far beyond.

So many memories from the past
for each of them to share;
the day went quickly flying by
and still they lingered there.

At last the day came to an end
as the sun set on the hill.
The miller and the man forever bound
by the wheel on the old grist mill.