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*****
For want of half a chance,
A third or second glance,
I sit alone, relearning how to write.
You went and snagged my heart,
But I don't look the part;
So you won't be here to conjure verse tonight.
I followed in your trail,
And studied every tale;
And help was at your every turn--
Is this not true?
And had I won your glance,
Or even half a chance,
This song I could have co-composed with you.
Don't say that you don't know me;
Full thirteen years ago,
I was right behind you, pointing to the sky.
We had pirate raids in parks,
And death-marches through the dark;
I untangled strings, and watched your puppet fly.
For your shows, I roamed through town,
Taping flyers up and down;
And all my skill with words was at your call and cue.
But whatever I might sing,
Or produce by drum or string,
To catch your ear, God knows what I must do.
My own strings are my full band,
For none else will reach a hand;
Not a finger's aid has come from next of kin.
Don't even try, they said,
And they left my soul for dead;
I was hobbled even before I could begin.
Still I struggle on alone,
Searching high and low for some
Who will show the ropes, and show the world
My light shines too;
But you exclude me out of hand
From your circle, from your band,
For my silhouette does not agree with you.
So, I'll call the Great Tomato;
May She warm your heart and mind,
And rejoin us by balloon, by land or sea.
Through this song, I'll seek your lair,
With bright feathers in my hair,
And keep singing till the Carrot follows me.
And eleven saints or none,
I will pray to every one
To thaw the chill between us, and let songs fly through;
And I'll prove, with half a chance,
I can make your spirit dance,
And the next song I will co-compose with you.
And I'll prove, with half a chance,
I can make your spirit dance,
And the next song I will co-compose with you.
