Drawing by ryky on deviantart

Here is just a summary of what the song is about:

Two kids, Knud and Johanna, grow up together and bond over stories and songs. They're separated when their families move. They reunite as adults. He's a shoemaker and she's a singer. He declares his love for her, but she says she's going to France and she regards him as a sibling. Despondent, he wanders Europe. He sees her sing again, and someone tells him that she's engaged. He keeps wandering, and finally has a dream under a willow tree that she declares her love for him. While dreaming, he freezes to death.