Songs That Got Away

Half a moment
We are together
I shall want no-one else
And nothing new.
Half a moment
I shall treasure,
Keep it locked away
For some future rainy day.

Should you leave me
With just this moment
In my mind
I shall capture it anew,
Like some picture
Taken in my childhood
Half a moment
Spent with you.


Half a moment
I shall treasure,
Keep it locked away
For some future rainy day.


Should you leave me
With just this moment
In my mind
I shall capture it anew,
Like some picture
Taken in my childhood
Half a moment
Spent with you.


Countless vivid memories
Spin before my view,
Like some toy kaleidoscope
Images of you.


Time looks kindly
On fleeting lovers
They can turn the briefest hour
Into a day
Turn a moment
To a lifetime
Making it to last
Blending future with the past.


We're together,
What else can matter?
Even though
Half a moment is too few
I shall save it
'til i have another
Making one whole moment
Filled with you.

What makes me love him?
It's not his singing,
I've heard his singing,
It sours the milk
And yet, it's gotten to the point
Where i prefer that kind of milk.

What makes me love him?
It's not his learning.
He's learned so slowly,
His whole life long
And though he really knows
A multitude of things
They're mostly wrong.


He's not romantic,
And yet i love him.
No one occasion
He's used me ill
And though he's handsome
I know inside me
Were he a plain man
I'd love him still.


What makes me love him?
It's quite beyond me,
It must be something
I can't define.
Unless it's merely
That he's masculine
And that he's mine.

I remember sky
It was blue as ink
Or at least i think
I remember sky.

I remember snow
Soft as feathers
Sharp as thumb tacks
Coming down like lint
And it made you squint
When the wind would blow.


And ice like vinyl
On the streets
Cold as silver
White as sheets
Rain like strings
And changing things
Like leaves.


I remember leaves
Green as spearmint
Crisp as paper.
I remember trees
Bare as coat racks
Spread like broken umbrellas.


And parks and bridges,
Ponds and zoos,
Ruddy faces,
Muddy shoes,
Light and noise and
Bees and boys
And days.


I remember days,
Or at least i try.
But as years go by
They're sort of haze,
And the bluest ink
Isn't really sky
And at times i think
I would gladly die
For a day of sky.

When i was a girl, i had a favourite story
Of the meadowlark who lived where the rivers wind
Her voice could match the angels' in its glory,
But she was blind,
The lark was blind.

An old king came and took her to his palace,
Where the walls were burnished bronze and golden braid,
And he fed her fruit and nuts from an ivory chalice and he prayed


"sing for me, my meadowlark
Sing for me of the silver morning.
Set me free, my meadowlark
And i'll buy you a priceless jewel,
And cloth of brocade and crewel,
And i'll love you for life if you will
Sing for me."


Than one day as the lark sang by the water
The god of the sun heard her in his flight
And her singing moved him so, he came and brought her
The gift of sight,
He gave her sight.
And she opened her eyes to the shimmer and the splendour
Of this beautiful young god, so proud and strong
And he called to the lark in a voice both rough and tender,
"come along,


Fly with me, my meadowlark,
Fly with me on the silver morning.
Past the sea where the dolphins bark,
We will dance on the coral beaches,
Make a feast of the plums and peaches,
Just as far as your vision reaches,
Fly with me."


But the meadowlark said no,
For the old king loved her so,
She couldn't bear to wound his pride.
So the sun god flew away and when the king came down that day,
He found his meadowlark had died.
Every time i heard that part i cried.


And now i stand here, starry-eyed and stormy.
Oh, just when i thought my heart was finally numb,
A beautiful young man appears before me
Singing "come
Oh, won't you come?"
And what can i do if finally for the first time
The one i'm burning for returns the glow?
If love has come at last it's picked the worst time
Still i know
I've got to go.


Fly away, meadowlark.
Fly away in the silver morning.
If i stay, i'll grow to curse the dark,
So it's off where the days won't bind me.
I know i leave wounds behind me,
But i won't let tomorrow find me
Back this way.


Before my past once again can blind me,
Fly away.


And we won't wait to say goodbye,
My beautiful young man and i.

Lud:
I love my wife and i love her more
Than the way i used to love her before
She became my wife, but today she is
So don't call me early 'cause i'll be busy,
Beside her waiting for her to wake
And her eyes to open like dawn is breaking
The whole world over for me today,
'cause i can't believe that i heard her say
She would honour, love and obey 'til death do us
Pardon me if i catch my breath.

When i knew my wife was the wife for me
We went out and sat by the willow tree,
And i begged and pleaded, uh huh,
Marry me, honey, and that is what she did.


Chorus:
Begged and pleaded, uh huh
Marry me, honey,
And that is what she did.

Seena (=s.b.):
Oh, how you pleaded
If you thought you needed to
You sure were wrong!
You took too long.
But i kept on praying
One day i'd be saying
I love my husband, i love him more
Than the way i used to love him before
He became my husband but now he is,
So don't call me early 'cause i'll be busy
Beside him waiting for him to wake
And his loving arms to reach up and take me
For one more trip to the milky way,
Like he did before, when i heard him say
He would honour, love and obey 'til death do us
Pardon me if i catch my breath.

Oh, i never thought he'd propose to me
'til he took me out by the willow tree,
And he begged and pleaded, uh huh,
Marry me, honey, and that is what he did.


Chorus:
Begged and pleaded, uh huh
Marry me, honey,
And that is what she did.

Seena (=s.b.):
I love my husband, i love him more
Than the way i used to love him before
He became my husband but now he is,
So don't call me early 'cause i'll be busy
Beside him waiting for him to wake
And his loving arms to reach up and take me
For one more trip to the milky way,
Like he did before, when i heard him say
He would honour, love and obey 'til death do us
Pardon me if i catch my breath.

Oh, i never thought he'd propose to me
'til he took me out by the willow tree,
And he begged and pleaded, uh huh,
Marry me, honey, and that is what we did.


Chorus:
Begged and pleaded, uh huh
Marry me, honey,
And that is what we did.

It has a tender sound
This little tune i found
I don't know why
It's following me around

It has a ... etc.

I heard it all begin
Above a broadway din
And it was so appealing
I joined right in


I heard it ... etc.

And now i walk along
Among the broadway throng
Inviting everybody
To sing my song


And now i ... etc.

I am going to like it here.
There is something about the place,
An encouraging atmosphere,
Like the smile on a friendly face.

There is something about the place,
So caressing and warm it is,
Like the smile on a friendly face,
Like a port in the storm it is.
So caressing and warm it is,
All the people are so sincere,
Like a port in the storm it is,
I am going to like it here.


All the people are so sincere,
There's especially one i like.
I am going to like it here,
It's the father's first son i like.
There's especially one i like,
There is something about his face.
It's the father's first son i like,
He's the reason i love the place.


There is something about his face,
I would follow him anywhere.
If he goes to another place ...
I am going to like it there.


There is something about his face,
I would follow him anywhere.
If he goes to another place ...
I am going to like it there.