Walter

Walter was my grandpa's dog & I thought he was my own. He used to chase the herd of Barbado we kept outside my grandpa's home. I'd join him & we'd holler at the ghost moon 'til it shone – Just rolling in the dirt & running wild in San Antone. Back then I couldn't drive away, I'd run or dream I'd fly away. I always seemed to find the road back home. I thought Walter, he was leading me, those days beneath the live oak trees But he was only chasing rabbits & I did it on my own. Singing Li-la-li, lie-la-lie, sometimes it takes you by surprise – The time it takes to write a simple song. Sifting through the sands of time, like souvenirs you've left behind, You can't always decide what you remember. I can picture my first night in jail, bad coffee & a crowded cell. The first time I rolled a reefer up or kissed a pretty mouth. But sitting here with all my thoughts of all I've done & all I've lost I can't recall the day we put ol' Walter in the ground. Singing Li-la-li, lie-la-lie, sometimes it takes you by surprise – The time it takes to write a simple song. Sifting through the sands of time, like souvenirs you've left behind, You can't always decide what you remember. Now my mind races like a river through the creek beds & the lime. & I'm seeking out those memories I guess I left too far behind. I swore I saw that ol' gray dog just sniffing at the ground around the birch tree in my grandpa's yard right where we laid him down. Singing Li-la-li, lie-la-lie, sometimes it takes you by surprise – The time it takes to write a simple song. Sifting through the sands of time, like souvenirs you've left behind, You can't always decide what you remember.