Song of the Dispossessed

the river is deep and the road is long,
daylight comes and I want to go home.

awoke this morning
to find my people's tongues were tied
and in my dreams
they were given books to poison their minds.

the river is deep and the mountain high,
how long before the other side.

we are their mortar,
their building bricks and their clay.
their gold teeth mirror
both our joys and our pain.

the river is deep and the ocean wide,
who will teach us how to read the signs.

the earth is our mother
she taught us to embrace the light,
now the lord is master
she suffers an eternal night.

you blocked up my ears,
you plucked out my eyes,
you cut out my tongue,
you fed me with lies,

oh lord.

{brendan perry}