The Wave Across the Line

(Verse 1) The ink is barely dry upon the page Another "win" staged on a velvet stage The numbers look like progress to the eye But there’s a bitter taste we can’t deny The hand that signs the check for the new road Is the same one casting stones to lighten the load Why must a kindness carry such a sting? A jagged edge on every golden thing? (Chorus) We used to wave before we knew the name Before the world became a winner’s game An honest broker knows the work’s enough Without the "us" and "them" and all that stuff You lose the soul when you start keeping score Turning a service to a civil war Just do the good and let the credit lie Like a summer cloud across a Southern sky. (Verse 2) In the marketplace, we learned a long time ago You reap the harvest that you choose to sow If you mock the man who’s buying what you sell You’ll find your shop is just an empty shell A representative should be a wide-open door Not a preacher shouting from a marble floor Listen to the silence in the town square There’s a hunger for a truth that’s actually fair. (Bridge) Is it too much to ask for simple grace? To look a neighbor squarely in the face? To build a school, a bridge, a healing wing Without the "political" bells you feel you have to ring? Put the mud back in the river where it goes And let the water wash away our woes. (Chorus) Oh, we used to wave before we knew the name Before the world became a winner’s game An honest broker knows the work’s enough Without the "us" and "them" and all that stuff You lose the soul when you start keeping score Turning a service to a civil war Just do the good and let the credit lie Like a summer cloud across a Southern sky. (Outro) Just do the work... Let the spirit lead... Plant the garden... And forget the seed.