Ballad of the Absent Mare
Say a prayer for the cowboyHis mare's run awayAnd he'll walk til he finds herHis darling, his strayBut the river's in floodAnd the roads are awashAnd the bridges break upIn the panic of loss.
And there's nothing to followThere's nowhere to goShe's gone like the summerGone like the snowAnd the crickets are breakingHis heart with their songAs the day caves inAnd the night is all wrong
Did he dream, was it sheWho went galloping pastAnd bent down the fernBroke open the grassAnd printed the mud withThe iron and the goldThat he nailed to her feetWhen he was the lord
And although she goes grazingA minute awayHe tracks her all nightHe tracks her all dayOh blind to her presenceExcept to compareHis injury hereWith her punishment there
Then at home on a branchIn the highest treeA songbird sings outSo suddenlyAh the sun is warmAnd the soft winds rideOn the willow treesBy the river side
Oh the world is sweetThe world is wideAnd she's there whereThe light and the darkness divideAnd the steam's coming off herShe's huge and she's shyAnd she steps on the moonWhen she paws at the sky
And she comes to his handBut she's not really tameShe longs to be lostHe longs for the sameAnd she'll bolt and she'll plungeThrough the first open passTo roll and to feedIn the sweet mountain grass
Or she'll make a breakFor the high plateauWhere there's nothing aboveAnd there's nothing belowAnd it's time for the burdenIt's time for the whipWill she walk through the flameCan he shoot from the hip
So he binds himselfTo the galloping mareAnd she binds herselfTo the rider thereAnd there is no spaceBut there's left and rightAnd there is no timeBut there's day and night
And he leans on her neckAnd he whispers low"Whither thou goestI will go"And they turn as oneAnd they head for the plainNo need for the whipAh, no need for the rein
Now the clasp of this unionWho fastens it tight?Who snaps it asunderThe very next nightSome say the riderSome say the mareOr that love's like the smokeBeyond all repair
But my darling says"Leonard, just let it go byThat old silhouetteOn the great western sky"So I pick out a tuneAnd they move right alongAnd they're gone like the smokeAnd they're gone like this song