I will never forget the walk to the station,
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Me with your suitcase being brotherly strong.
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And trying to make light of the whole situation,
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In mild conversation we moved through the throng,
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And above all the roar of the town was the blue sky,
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I could here the birds singing for the joy of the day
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And there was no support from the city forthcoming,
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No sympathy numbing your going away.
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It's hard to say goodbye.
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And there was you with your bright eyes and best dress for travelling
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And me in my work clothes, unshaven and plain,
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Oh, I fully intended to put in the half day,
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But my good intentions went with you on the train.
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And I never looked back as the train left the station,
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Crossed over the road and walked into the park,
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And there in a bar an old man was singing,
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And I sat there drinking until it got dark.
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And outside the trees they grew starlings like apples,
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Their hustle and chatter not dampened by the rain.
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That washed down the pavements and into the gutters,
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That soaked through my clothes as I set out again,
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And above me the stars were all hidden by rain clouds,
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The song of the old man still locked in my brain,
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And all emigration, the curse of a nation
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The setting now fitting his sad sweet refrain.
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-----------------
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The Setting
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| Ralph McTell |
