Mothers' Day - Tom Chapin

Before the days of Jello Lived a prehistoric fellow, Who loved a maid and courted her Beneath the banyan tree. And they had lots of children. And their children all had children. And they kept on having children Until one of them had me! We're a family and we're a tree. Our roots go deep down in history From my great-great-granddaddy reaching up to me, We're a green and growing family tree. My grandpa came from Russia; My grandma came from Prussia; They met in Nova Scotia, Had my dad in Tennessee. Then they moved to Yokohama Where Daddy met my Mama. Her dad's from Alabama and her mom's part Cherokee. We're a family and we're a tree. Our roots go deep down in history From my great-great-granddaddy reaching up to me, We're a green and growing family tree. Well one fine day I may go To Tierra Del Fuego. Perhaps I'll meet my wife there And we'll move to Timbuktu. And our kid will be bilingual, And though she may stay single, She could, of course, comingle with the King of Kathmandu. 'Cause we're a family and we're a tree. Our roots go deep down in history From my great-great-granddaddy reaching up to me, We're a green and growing family tree. The folks in Madagascar Aren't the same as in Alaskar; They got different foods, different moods And different colored skin. You may have a different name, But underneath we're much the same; You're probably my cousin and the whole world is our kin. We're a family and we're a tree. Our roots go deep down in history From my great-great-grandmother reaching up to me, We're a green and growing family tree. We're a green and growing family.

It was raining hard in 'Frisco I needed one more fare to make my night A lady up ahead waved to flag me down She got in at the light Oh, where you going to, my lady blue It's a shame you ruined your gown in the rain She just looked out the window She said, "16 Parkside Lane" Something about her was familiar I could swear I'd seen her face before But she said, "I'm sure you're mistaken" And she didn't say anything more It took a while, but she looked in the mirror And she glanced at the license for my name A smile seemed to come to her slowly It was a sad smile, just the same And she said, "How are you, Harry?" I said, "How are you, Sue? Through the too many miles and the too little smiles I still remember you" It was somewhere in a fairy tale I used to take her home in my car We learned about love in the back of the Dodge The lesson hadn't gone too far You see she was gonna be an actress And I was gonna learn to fly She took off to find the footlights And I took off to find the sky Oh, I've got something inside me To drive a princess blind There's a wild man, wizard He's hiding in me, illuminating my mind Oh, I've got something inside me Not what my life's about 'Cause I've been letting my outside tide me Over 'til my time runs out Baby's so high that she's skying Yes, she's flying, afraid to fall I'll tell you why baby's crying 'Cause she's dying, aren't we all? There was not much more for us to talk about Whatever we had once was gone So I turned my cab into the driveway Past the gate and the fine trimmed lawns And she said, "We must get together" But I knew it'd never be arranged And she handed me 20 dollars for a 250 fare She said, "Harry, keep the change" Well, another man might have been angry And another man might have been hurt But another man never would have let her go I stashed the bill in my shirt And she walked away in silence It's strange how you never know But we'd both gotten what we'd asked for Such a long, long time ago You see she was gonna be an actress And I was gonna learn to fly She took off to find the footlights And I took off for the sky And here, she's acting happy Inside her handsome home And me, I'm flying in my taxi Taking tips and getting stoned I go flying so high, when I'm stoned

All my life's a circle; Sunrise and sundown; Moon rolls thru the nighttime; Till the daybreak comes around. All my life's a circle; But I can't tell you why; Season's spinning round again; The years keep rollin' by. It seems like I've been here before; I can't remember when; But I have this funny feeling; That we'll all be together again. No straight lines make up my life; And all my roads have bends; There's no clear-cut beginnings; And so far no dead-ends. Chorus: I found you a thousand times; I guess you done the same; But then we lose each other; It's like a children's game; As I find you here again; A thought runs through my mind; Our love is like a circle; Let's go 'round one more time. Chorus