[Intro | Tribal throaty humming]
(Hummmmmm)
(Hummmmmm)
Mmmmm mmm mmmm
(Slow talking drum. Distant horns.)
[Verse 1]
Watch di morning smile
Sun kiss up di sky
Cool breeze from di hillside
Whisper soft pass mi by
Hear di drum inna di bud dem wing
Sap a rise
Dust float cross di yard gate
Time cyan nowhere hide
Rooster ruin up silence
Goat bell answer chime
Smoke curl from di cook-pot
Draw slow line
Pickney laugh down di lane side
Foot dem beat dry clay
Life a start all over
Same same different day
Mi nyam bread a hunger season
Mi taste di salt a tears
Mi siddung quiet pon di veranda
Count mi losses… count mi years
Mi watch di world keep turning
Same sun, different face
Friends weh use fi fill dis yard
Gone without a trace
Pikney! Gather round, mek mi tell yuh
[Chorus — Deep choir, warm like earth]
Tek it, tek it from mi hand
No gold, no land, no lie
All weh soul can carry wid it
A bread… salt… an time
A bread… salt… an time
[Verse 2 — Talking drum answers]
Mi bury fren dem like harvest
One by one dem lay
Fresh earth cover laughter
Rain come wash dem way
Watch big dream crumble slow
Castle melt to sand
Flag weh used to fly high
Drop quiet inna mi hand
Hold whole world inna mi chest once
Fire bright an prime
Feel it cool to ember
Ash drift off inna time
Hear old song inna mi memory
Voice dem call mi name
Some fade like far thunda
Some still burn like flame
Mi walk road weh cut deep
Barefoot pon di stone
Crowd coulda deh around mi
Still mi feel alone
But di Lord still teach patience
Show mi how fi wane
Even when yuh half missing
Light come back again
River still a travel
Neva late, neva early
Carry grief to ocean
Come back soft an curly
Wind no keep no secret
Mountain no keep crime
Listen!
Everything return to quiet
When it reach it time
Everything bow to stillness
Bell stop mark di chime
An all weh really matter
A bread… salt… an time
[Bridge — Spoken-sung]
No frighten fi road weh cut yuh
No bow to easy day
Bitter root can still feed yuh
Loss can show di way
[Tribal throaty humming]
(Hummmmmm)
(Hummmmmm)
Mmmmm mmm mmmm
Ooooooo Oooo oooooo
If yuh rise, pull somebody wid yuh
If yuh drop, face di light
Lef di worl likkle softer
Dan how yuh meet it first night
[Final Chorus — Full choir, talking drum ascending]
Tek it, tek it from mi hand
Mi story fi yuh climb
Mi nuh own nutten else but wisdom
Bread… salt… an time
Tek it — walk go farther
Shine where mi neva shine
Build tomorrow from di pieces
Bread… salt… an time
[Outro]
When mi chair rock empty sunset
An mi name fade outta earth
Feed di pickney dem a table…
Bread… salt… an time
Salt an time
[Tribal throaty humming]
(Hummmmmm)
(Hummmmmm)
Mmmmm mmm mmmm
(Single talking drum.)
Britz_77