A long way from home
And two coyotes howl into the night,
Pale moon’s looking me in the eye,
And I don’t got no campfire going tonight.
A saddle’s a lonesome companion
But this trusty steed’s sure good to me,
Four hooves and a long mane
And my dusty trail goes on.
A valley’s spread is my eager eye
Around every cresting corner,
Naming trees and flicking bees
And I’m just rolling along.
I am a lonely gambler
I’ve got chips in every pocket
Two cards up my sleeves
But with all my kings and aces
I’ve got no one on my mind
I visit all the dark rooms
All known enemies of state
Keep me company into the night
But with all my kings and aces
I’ve got no one on my mind
The rounds at half past midnight
Two cigarettes in my hand
I’ve been the gambler, I’ve been the loser
But with all my kings and aces
I’ve got no one on my mind
Make me choke my Chesapeake Bay oysters
Down a long narrow tube called onion
On a salty slab of rust
That juts out from the corner
Of a jagged table now suffering the load
Of my humongous belly,
Sliced from gill to gill
And forgetting the kind manners one usually exhibits
While out dining with guests
In a trendy restaurant
On the East side of town.
Hold my napkin tight to my lapel,
And caress these breasts
That light the night on fire
Through a venomous spray
Of narcotics and other banned substances
Hurled deep into the bowels
Of an East Van back alley entrance,
Identified by a single spotlight
Casting lurking shadows into my side glances
And smelling of stale urine
Upon the disposal bin filled with sour milk.
Knock knock, let me in.
I feel I’m suffering alone.
I feel my eyes are closing off.
I think that there’s no way
I’ll live
To tell all of my stories
From this very long, long road.
Because it is a long, long road.
I had a hand in my own truth.
I had desire cutting deep.
I feel there was a moment
When all
I had to do was dream
Enter in this long, long road.
Because it is a long, long road.
I have never let go of emptiness.
I have held out my heart to sing out loud.
I had the chance to make
A life
With everything I dreamt
Along this very long, long road.
Because it is a long, long road.
I needed one too many paths.
I needed to let go of this I knew.
I have always believed
We are
Passionate indeed.
So we’re all a long, long road.
Because it is a long, long road.
I woke up one morning
And all I could see was stars and flickering lights and little bits of human nature fluttering about the place,
Which is when I said to myself:
“Ned, you’ve made quite delight of this so far, you’ve had your way with a lot of things that have always kept your legs moving forward.
Do you know what time it is?”
Upon this thought I was forced to think for quite some time.
You see, I didn’t have a watch, and on account of the stars in the morning, I was already quite perplexed.
But someone came around at this time and motioned to the wall where there rested a round clock.
To which I was once again delighted in for I could tell time on these funny machines.
But my morning walk, which stretched on for a good number of hours, brought me to one sudden stop as I stared face to face with an angel who had come to hold my hand.
We didn’t dance, but we waltzed through the streets as we discussed what was on both our minds.
One thought after the other. One question after the other.
I returned home, but the lights had all been turned low. There were candles all around showing me peace and I stepped in.
And as I stepped in to a dream I knew and loved and had pushed away, I also stepped out of a unconsciousness I had been living under.
For today was no ordinary day,
Today is the day it all began.
Born with a soldier on my back,
A militarically kind of fight.
I marched for justice.
I marched with a heavy heart.
And you step on your way?
You take leave without wisdom,
And miss all these unspoken thoughts.
And if mother In Control
Makes an exit from a foolish heart,
Leave diamonds on the floor;
Take our mirrors down at night.
Truth is not in an insult!
Let’s be born again,
An ocean in the sky!
And nighttime falls
To machine gun sunrise.
I screamed from head to feet
With dragging dreams
Slipping down the lonesome path
Of all I’ve ever wanted.
And from here a whisper started,
Like a row of columns
Three hundred feet tall;
Built by the hands of iron giants
Who spoke only in grunts.
My itchy trigger finger
Gargled a strong glass of salt water,
And spit truth onto dry solid ground
That crackled underneath the weight of my
Soft leather soles, wrapping their
Loose ends half way up my calf.
Thankfully I knew how to walk,
I knew that all good things
Come at the end of the row,
So I buttoned up my callused shell
And I rolled on.