Hands Like Rain

Slowly crawling 'cross the floor Comes a shadow through the window From the house next door And the dust specks dancing In the last of the light One more evening passing She walked on tiptoes On a gravel bar Wet skin pale as the evening star The North Platte winding like a silver eel Hands like rain on August fields Falling soft To ease the drought inside As memory fades Not much remains But hands like rain Now I stand on stiff legs And I clutch the cane And I search the sky for a sign of rain As if it matters As if it makes a damn Just an old man's habit Down the street The schoolboys play Dime novel heroes from another day Who now are nothing more than faceless names And a nameless face with hands like rain We'd run by night And we'd hide by day So the papers used to say On stolen horses and borrowed time Dancing girls and brandy wine I can hear them calling They're calling me I can here them calling But I still can't see Life and legend are an awkward pair And there ain't much magic anywhere Except in moments we can't often steal Hands like rain on August fields