Our Mother Is Crying
- Cree Indian Proverb
© Richard Coffey - All Rights Reserved
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Our Mother Is Crying
Out on the plains we gather
In the early evening light
Our spirits crushed and battered
So weary from the fight
Our land's been torn asunder
Our hunting grounds are gone
We can no longer hear the thunder
Of the buffalo herds at dawn.
We smoke the pipe of peace
With tribes from far away
And we sit in silent sadness
As the night turns into day.
The white man he made the promise
To stop taking all the land
But never was he honest
This we now understand.
Our mother is crying
Our world now is dying
Our mother is crying for love...
Across the fields we wander
Still searching for a clue
How to halt the warming?
What can we hope to do?
The polar ice is melting
Watch glaciers disappear
The forest fires are raging
But no one wants to hear.
Big businesses are booming
There's money to be made!
Everyone's assuming
This eco-chatter soon will fade
"Why talk of slowing down?
We haven't got the time
Let's wait until tomorrow
The climate's doing fine."
Our mother is crying
Our planet is dying
Our mother is crying for love...
Please listen...
She’s calling you
Written June 19th, 2021
© 2021 Rich Coffey
-All Rights Reserved-
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Our Mother Is Crying
Global warming... climate change... how much longer can this issue be swept under the rug? As we watch the glaciers retreat and the forest fires claiming more and more of the west, we've reached a critical moment. Yes it's tough to make sacrifices today for a better tomorrow but is it too late? That's the question...
Lest we forget our own careless history of messing with Mother Nature—we have a shameful legacy. As the white man migrated and settled westward, American Indian lands were stolen, the buffalo was nearly exterminated and in the 1930s, a lengthy and severe drought caused massive dust storms forcing tens of thousands of poverty-stricken families to abandon their farms. The Dust Bowl
Today of course we are witnessing a similar issue as droughts envelope the west and fires consume the forests. Yet tragically, many folks (and politicians) still think its all a hoax! 
Once the delicate balance of nature is disturbed, there will always be consequences...
About the Music and Lyrics
As usual—harmonically this tune is a little complicated. Suffice to say, sus2 chords over shifting open fifths below seems to be the basic flavor on the verses. Native American frame drums and flute enhance the arrangement and sound extracts of both Native American chanting and current relevant newscasts add to the topic's poignancy...
Perhaps an explanation of the lyrics isn't necessay but the first section occurs in the past as American settlers forged westward and the U.S Government waged endless battles against displaced Native Americans. The second half of the 19th Century was especially brutal. The second section of the song deals with current events as the constant philosophical fight over the reality of climate change tragically continues...
About the Photo
Although I was tempted to put a slide show together, this photo of a small pond right near where we live seemed to epitomize the beauty of nature that is slowing disappearing. Sometimes "less" is all you need!
