And I sit here on the back porch in the twilight
And I saw a sign on easy street
I sit here and listen to the wind blow
But I always kept the clothes on out backs
Pray for the independent, little man
And I hear the crickets hum
I it here and listen to the clock strike
I went into town of the fourth of July
Watched 'em parade past The Union Jack
The banker was the farmer's friend
And I see the clouds cross the weathered
One step forward and two steps back
Night I listen to the rushin' of the wheels
Quit the plant in '57
I've held the leather reins in my hands
"That little punk, he never had to serve"
Me, I just know how to raise things
But the showers never come
Said, "Be prepared to stop"
Now I'm glad that I have quit
Got incorporated, too
Son-in-law just shakes his head and says
I sit here and rub my hands
And I sit here in the shadow of the suburbs
And the cold war it's been hard to make ends meet
Folks these days just don't do nothin'
Between the hot, dry weather and the taxes
Now, it all comes down to numbers
I always put the shoes on our feet
That was all I ever knew
Everywhere I turn
Faces and I watch the harvest burn
I don't see next year's crop
Banks back then was lendin' money
I sit and watch the lightning in the distance
Late spring snow and early fall sleet
Had some time for farmin' then
Simply for the love of it
And look out across these empty fields
I've felt the soft ground under my feet
I sit here in earshot of the bypass and all
Now I see my handiwork on the block
Big boys, they all got computers
I used to make the tractors and the
I've seen dog days and dusty days
Watched 'em break out the brass and beat on the drum
He says, "We get the government we deserve"
Combines that plowed and harvested this great land
My grandson, he comes home from college
