Restless as the River

[couchgrouch]

Restless as the RiverThey say he lost his left eye in the Navyafter twenty hard years on a gunshiphe'd grin and say life on the ocean was gravynext to steamy barges on the Mississiphe kept a queen of hearts 'neath his beat-up derbypint of shine in his patchy overallshe'd stand on the bow looking proud n sturdywilling to follow where the current calledthey say a sailor's spirit, roams the waves foreverand no one can get near it, for it's restless as the riverwell, he had a lady waiting way up in St. Looeychairs at poker tables all over New Orleansthat lady's eyes always got wide and deweywhen he left her arms for a handful of queensshe had an old-fashioned adobe ovenfor baked possum and lattice-top lemon piesand after a night of her sweet lovin'he was on the water 'fore the sweat'd drythey say a sailor's spirit, roams the waves foreverand no one can get near it, for it's restless as the riverhe wondered about hades and that turned to worryhe feared he'd pay for leaving her therecos making love to a wildcat from Missourikicked like moonshine then soothed him like prayercrows cawed in the willows as he slowly passed bythe steely moon was a hook in the river's mouthwas that starlight's glint or tears on his glass eyeas his life and barge made its way souththey say a sailor's spirit, roams the waves foreverand no one can get near it, for it's restless as the rivernow the river's a path that rarely gets beatenonly God can trace a man's tracks on its roadbut she heard her man was shot in the back for cheatin'on the deck of some Big Easy gambling boat now hades may be hot but southern graves are hotterso he should've been buried in the rising tidebut only the Lord can plant a cross upon the waterand she doubts crows eat the pies she leaves on the riversidecos they say a sailor's spirit, roams the waves foreverand no one can get near it, for it's restless as the river(c)2006 Robert George