Story Behind The Song
On July 4th 1989, I went to The Old State House in Boston to hear the Declaration of Independence read from the balcony. This was just after the Tiananmen Square Massacre in China. One of the students that had fled the massacre and was now in the United States put a wreath on the tomb of the unknown soldier. He seemed to still be in shock. I was touched by the circumstances of the day and wrote this piece.
| Song Length |
9:42 |
Genre |
Jazz - Modern, Spoken Word - Experimental |
Lyrics
I WATCHED A CHILD AS SHE PLAYED
SHE WATCHED THE CLOUDS AND THE SHAPES THEY MADE
BEAUTIFUL LITTLE GIRL
HOW DO YOU SEE OUR WORLD
BLIND ARE YOU TO HURT AND LIES
AS YOU CHASE YOUR DREAMS THROUGH CHILD'S EYES
WHILE IN THE STREETS ANOTHER PLAYS
WITH THE ROCKS AND FIRE HE'S MADE
SO YOUNG AND YET SO WISE
AN OLD MAN'S SOUL BEHIND CHILD'S EYES
I STARED AT THIS "MAN"
WHAT DID HE LEAVE BEHIND?
I LOOKED IN HIS EYES
HE LOOKED THROUGH MINE
I TRIED TO FIND PICTURES OF THE PLACE HE'D BEEN
BUT I COULDN'T IMAGINE THE THINGS HE'D SEEN
FOR HIS EYES CARRIED VISIONS FAR BEYOND HIS YEARS
THEY WERE DARK MURKY WATERS MOVED BEYOND TEARS.
IF THE EYES ARE A WINDOW TO EVERY MAN'S SOUL
THEN I LOOK AROUND AND I FEAR FOR THIS WORLD
I FEAR THAT IN TIME THERE WILL BE MORE HURT AND MORE LIES
IN A WORLD WHERE FEW HAVE SEEN THROUGH CHILD'S EYES