Starlings

Lyrics

Riding with my family in the '58 Buick I can still recall How we'd drive through the valley To my Grandmother's house Every summer vacation When I was small And I'd gaze out the window At the farms and the orchards Counting the telephone poles passing by And the sound of our motor Would frighten the starlings And they'd rise from the fields to fly My mother would grumble "Those birds are a curse They're a thorn in the farmers' side," But I couldn't help feeling sad and inspired By their desperate ballet in the sky, oh... Say a prayer for the starlings The hot, dry wind beats their ragged wings Have a thought for the starlings No one ever listens to the songs they sing Say a prayer for the starlings There's no welcome for them anywhere Leave some crumbs for the starlings They say that winter will be cold this year She was sitting on a curb by the 7 Eleven She asked if I had some spare change Her skin wore that leathered and windburned look And the light in her blue eyes was wild and strange I sat down beside her and asked her her name She said, "Pick one you like, I need something to eat" And her life made me think Of the dead leaves in autumn Drifting like ghosts down the street Is the life that we celebrate only a dream A lie that we serve like a god made of stone? And our hearts are the hunter Birds with no nesting place Weary and aching for home Say a prayer for the starlings The hot, dry wind beats their ragged wings Have a thought for the starlings No one ever listens to the songs they sing Say a prayer for the starlings There's no welcome for them anywhere Leave some crumbs for the starlings They say that winter will be cold this year This year Hey, yeah