Rich Coffey · We Wonder Why?

There’s a cry across the meadow
There’s a sigh beneath the trees
We wonder why there’s so much sorrow
That comes with every evening breeze.

As we sit along the river
And watch the sunshine slowly fade
We wonder why the world has shunned us
Into darkness we must wade.

Still we treasure every sunrise
And we’re glad for one more day
We’ll go on with hope and wonder
If better times will come our way.

Why oh why?... (3x)
We wonder why?

One more day just like the others
One more night our children cry
One more time we’re forced to scatter
One more reason, one more lie.

So we’ll bow our heads in silence
Seeking love from all who can
Give a little ounce of kindness
To those who’ll try and understand.

Still we treasure every sunrise
And we’re glad for one more day
We’ll go on with hope and wonder
If better times will come our way.

Why oh why?... (3x)
We wonder why?

Comments:

I wrote these lyrics from the view point of a Native American in the mid 1800s but sadly it is applicable to many other patterns in our county’s history: escaped slaves, Irish assimilation and now of course immigrant families escaping persecution in Central America...

About the Music:

Music, Lyrics, Vocals: Rich Coffey

This song features the electric piano and a Native American flute. Add9 chords–without the third–set the flavor in the verses. The graphics were updated and the audio was remixed for SoundCloud on 2/16/2024.

Further Historical Info

• Indian Removal Act
• This Land Was Theirs…
  The Native America saga in the upstate New York area.
• How The West Was Lost…
  The entire series on Discovery Channel is now online: Iroquois, Seminole, Nez Perce, Cheyenne, Apache, etc.
  
• Five Civilized Tribes

The Trail of Tears

• Trail Of Tears
  Approximately 2,000–8,000 of the 16,543 relocated Cherokee perished along the way and about 2,500–6,000 Choctaws died along away as well.
• U.S. Apology - 2010 (CNN)

U.S. Treaties

• U.S. Broken Treaties 
  From 1778 to 1871, the United States government entered into more than 500 treaties with the Native American tribes; all of these treaties have since been violated in some way or outright broken by the U.S. government.
• Broken Promises - The Sad Saga of Deceit by our U.S. Government