Red Earth Remains

INTRO: SOFT HIGHLIFE GUITAR, HUM VERSE 1 Rain came first as a scent on the hill, Iron in the air, and the boy standing still; Mama's hand on my head at the door: "Keep him on the road, Lord, and bring him home once more." CHORUS The road ran red, the road ran white, From Akuapem dust to the Michigan night; When the path was broken and the plans were gone, You were the ground I was standing on. Let the snow come down, let the seasons change: The red earth remains, the red earth remains. VERSE 2 Legon said numbers, then said biology; Korle Bu, Baltimore, Atlanta called to me. I found a steady hand, and she never let go, Then Ann Arbor taught me the patience of snow. CHORUS The road ran red, the road ran white, From Akuapem dust to the Michigan night; When the path was broken and the plans were gone, You were the ground I was standing on. Let the snow come down, let the seasons change: The red earth remains, the red earth remains. VERSE 3: QUIETER July on the highway, the afternoon bright, One moment of sleep, then a long, long night; The signal went down and it met with a wall. "Again," said the therapist, again through it all. BRIDGE: CALL AND RESPONSE, LEAD AND CHOIR Twereduampɔn, (the One I lean upon) Twereduampɔn, (I lean and do not fall) Onyankopɔn, (You kept me on the road) Twereduampɔn, (You carried me through it all) VERSE 4 She sat by the rail when the numbers ran low; Akos in the kitchen, the friends who would show. Not a word of why, just a hand and a prayer: Providence won't explain, but it's always there. FINAL CHORUS: FULL CHOIR The road ran red, the road ran white, From Akuapem dust to the Michigan night; When the path was broken and the plans were gone, You were the ground I was standing on. So let the snow come down, let the seasons change: Beneath the snow, the red earth remains. OUTRO: CHOIR HUM, GUITAR FADES The red earth remains.