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THE RIDER
Away toward the west the rider speeds
and his harley was crimson and bold
and his thoughts were on the long ago
to his friends in the days of old
to the left of him was the rocky coast
to the right, were the flowers of the field
and on he speeds on the road of black
to the hum of the harley's wheels
The wind in his face was sweet and cool
and the mist in the air was clean
and the early sun felt warm on his back
and his mind was full of dreams
dream's of his friends of yesterday
back in the days of Nam
back to the plans they all had made
when their lives would be sweet and grand
back to the dreams that they had dreamed
as they hid in the jungle green
and their minds went wild as the laughed and thought
of their lives in such pleasant scenes
Oh to ride their harley's across the land
and to see the sights galore
seven comrads together again
and they wondered what life had in store
But life is cruel and reality cold
and our time is short and brief
Joe was killed in the twilight hours
and our hearts were filled with grief
then there was Bob and little Jim
and then one by one they were gone
and just two of us, we made it home
but Pete had agent orange
We kept in touch and we made our plans
to ride with the wind in our face
but in our minds we always knew
that this ride would never take place
then finally Pete died and he went on home
now he rides in glory with our friends
and I'm the one that's left behind
to deal with what ever life sends
Well, the days of Nam are still with me
I'm misplaced and can never forget
the sights of horrow, the sounds of war
in a world of torment and regret
So I ride the land
as we always planned
and my buddies are here with me
our dreams are as real as they were back then
as we ride by the blue green sea
And as the sun comes up in this land so bright
in this land that we fought and we died for
I'll ride like the wind and I'll think of them
till time for me is no more
Now I sit and I think of the past
in the shade of this ancient old tree
and life is lonely for I have no one
that ever cared for me
Oh where are you, my buddies
where are you, my friends
why did you leave me behind
why did you go, where did you go
how could you be so unkind
You were the family I never would have
you were my friends so true
but you left me here to dream all alone
and why, I haven't a clue
Now a toast to my friends of Nam
and the plans that we all had made
I'll carry them out, I'll carry them out
till my debt to you is paid
Now he sleeps in a spot along the road
and a tear trickles down his face
and he dreams of things of long ago
and he's alone and out of place
Just a bunch of old veterans upon their bikes
riding the highways of time
seeing the land, just the seven of them
in the memories of his mind
And on he goes on his lonely road
to the sound of the harley's trill
the rider, the rider is riding we see
his plans and his dreams to fulfill
Now he tops the hill and is gone from sight
and the sun shines warm on his back
just an old soldier, the rider of time
on the way to his last bivouac
