Beth DeSombre: Music
The Lucky Ones
(Beth DeSombre)
The Lucky Ones
We’re the lucky ones
With wind and water rising, we heard the bulletin
All we brought along
The clothes we wore, the food we carried, and medicine
As thunder crashed and rain was raging, escape was first in mind
But as the calm returns we’re gauging what we left behind
Grandmother’s quilt, pinwheel design
Made for the day she was married
She always hoped it would be mine
To give when my daughter was wed
It’s buried forever instead
In the aftermath
The first few nights, in dreams, the water would come again
We kept traveling
To find a shelter, safe and dry, that would take us in
But now each day when we awaken at the break of dawn
We can’t forget the things not taken we now know are gone
Records of births, weddings, and loss
Inscribed in the family Bible
Memories of generations across
The limbs of the family tree
Were carried away out to sea
There’s so little left
The place our modest home once stood is now barren ground
But we’ll start again
We’ll build with hope, determination, and hand-me-downs
Though loss and sadness cloud our eyes after all the rain
We’ll come in time to recognize the treasures that remain
Grandmother’s faith, our family ties
The songs we were raised to keep singing
Our heirlooms are gone, and no one denies
At times it is hard to go on
But the roots that we grow from are strong
We’re the lucky ones . . .
© Beth DeSombre 2007