Lyrics
May 22, 2014 - Traveler's Lullaby Lyrics
This Heart of Mine Deserves More | Words and music by Barb Webber | Written 1998 | © 2000 Barbara T. Webber
Been livin' in a cave for way too long,
reminded of the things that I've done wrong.
Been pushed, shoved and bullied into losin' my way
till I believed the world was a deep, dark grave.
Why change when you've nothin' to gain.
Get kinda used to livin' with pain.
But he threw me out ‘cause I wasn't worthy.
Best gift that he gave to me.
Refrain:
This heart of mine's been bruised before,
laid down and trampled on the floor.
The next time I love, gonna take it slow
‘Cause this heart of mine deserves more.
This heart of mine deserves more.
Crawlin' from the cave into bright sunlight
with very little energy to set things right.
Been shocked, stunned and cornered into taking a stand
when all around I see only shifting sand.
Each day I survive I win.
With help from my Father and friends,
I'm finding out that I am worthy.
It's the best gift that I'm giving to me. Refrain
I'm livin' in a world that is bright and warm
And in you waltz with your charisma and charm
I won't be wined, wooed, or courted into giving my ground
‘cause I've already fallen off that merry-go-round.
Love is patient, love is kind.
Love involves the heart and mind.
Please give me time to find if we are worthy.
It's the best gift you can give to me. Refrain
Steady Ground | Words and music by Barb Webber | Written in 1999 | ©2000 Barbara T. Webber
The first time I held you in my arms, I knew that you were heaven blest
And I asked God to show me how to love you best.
You twirled and tumbled and climbed around,
while I stood with open arms on the ground,
ready to hold you if something went awry.
Suddenly you were eager to fly, away.
Refrain:
Oh Child, where did your wings go?
Why are you falling out of control?
I'm here to catch you.
I'm here to hold you.
Remember you're from steady ground.
I always knew there'd come a time when I would not agree with you,
But I thought our love would see us through.
The world is shaped by dreams of youth
when built on the lap of wisdom's truth.
You hear voices are calling you "climb high."
My heart goes with you always as you fly, away. Refrain
It takes a time or two of trying before you finally get it right.
At the end of every tunnel is a bright light.
Generations stand behind you now,
cheering and proud like a noisy crowd.
Take a deep breath and stretch your arms out wide.
Pack our love with you as you fly, away. Refrain
Something Stole My Mama's Mind | Words and music by Barb Webber | Written in 1997 | ©2000 Barbara T. Webber
She walks in the world of the living dead.
Pieces of thoughts float through her head.
Twenty-five degrees out and she's running down the street.
Her coat's in the shower, there's no shoes on her feet.
Refrain:
Something stole, something stole,
something stole my mama's mind,
and I don't like what it left behind.
She calls out for Papa, begs him to come.
Where has he gone now, what has he done.
Someone tells her he's long gone, she breaks down and cries.
Oh my poor mama, grief is frozen in her eyes. Refrain
A lifetime of memories withered on the vine
Faces in photographs, names lost for all of time.
Time has no meaning, no future no past.
Tell me how long this prison's gonna last. Refrain
She sits near the window in her favorite rocking chair.
She looks like an angel, the sun shining in her hair.
I'm an orphan with a parent, and I'm on my knees to pray,
Oh my sweet Jesus, touch my mama's mind today. Refrain
WINDS OF SAINT JUDE | Words and music by Barb Webber | ©1996 Barbara T. Webber
I've been traveling this road such a long time.
All things considered, I'm doing just fine.
Drive the same way to work and the same way home,
when the labor is done, I sit back alone.
Silence is solace and silence is good.
And the sound of my heartbeat is my soul's true food.
It pounds out a rhythm in the deep of the night
And it told me my life was a bit too uptight.
Refrain:
And the winds of St. Jude are blowing through my heart.
I feel it coming, a fresh start.
With the morning dew, I start thinking anew.
Open the doors for the winds of St. Jude.
Rubbing shoulders with people I feared yesterday.
Hearing stories of the cold wind that blows their way.
Ride the bus into work and home again.
Never knowing when I meet the smile of a friend.
Counting my blessings with opened eyes
Guess I have more when I look twice.
I gave away choices and now I'm ashamed
Lost too much living each time I complained. Refrain
Look back at the clones I used to call friends.
Look back at their empty eyes and grins.
Roll up my sleeves and test a new road.
Love is a choice and change is the toll. Refrain
In a Forest of Trees | Words and music by Barb Webber | Written 1998 | ©2000 Barbara T. Webber
Rushing through life's calendar
the trees flash by in a blur
You cry to me about feeling lost
and I heard not a word.
Now you tell me that you may not find your way along our road.
And I fall and crumble beneath this painful load.
Refrain:
I was not awake for you my dear
For the things your heart wanted mine to hear.
Like a gentle breeze in a forest of trees
I lost part of you somehow.
Please forgive me now.
I sit on a stone on the forest floor
The sunlight streams from above
I listen carefully for your song
to speak to me of love
I can only wait to receive your heart should you decide to stay
And pray for a whisper of hope upon this day. Refrain
Night Time | Words and music by Gregg Lindsay | ©2000 Gregg Lindsay
Every night when the sun goes down,
the moon wakes up and the stars, they dance around.
Time to relax, lay down your sleepy head.
Put away your storybook, it's time for bed.
Refrain: Each night just about this late hour,
start dreaming dreams of climbing a tower,
flying above the houses and trees,
marching with the Teddy Bears,
conversing with the bees.
Night time is the right time to catch a few Z's.
Get your forty winks in, slip underneath the sheets.
Hello Mr. Sandman, hit the rack, take a snooze.
But the best part about Night time, is being alone with you.
BRIDGE: The pulse of the city is throbbing all day, it doesn't skip a beat for you.
You butter your bread fighting traffic jams, we've better things to do.
The alarm clock goes off and you take your shower.
I put on the tea but the milk is sour.
Rush out the door but always with a kiss.
The day is starting, the night time's what I'll miss.
Refrain: Each night just about this late hour,
start dreaming dreams of climbing a tower,
flying above the houses and trees.
Just being with the ones you love,
it's good enough for me.
Night time is the right time to catch a few Z's.
Get your forty winks in, slip underneath the sheets.
Hello Mr. Sandman, hit the rack, take a snooze.
But the best part about Night time, is being alone with you.
Colored Threads | Words and music by Barb Webber | Written 1996 | ©2000 Barbara T. Webber
Colored threads on ivory cloth,
in and out she pulls them taut
Lets her dreams fly far and wide,
lifts her head and then she cries.
Farm work's hard on a woman's hands
and housework holds no glory.
When the book is written on these pioneer lands,
the woman fights for her story.
Her friend is the dim lamplight,
when all are asleep at night,
and she can be who she wants to be.
Grandma's dreams are sewn in colors,
yellow hope and melancholic blue.
Grandma's prayers for her granddaughters
only ask that their dreams come true.
Colored threads on ivory cloth,
in and out she pulls them taut.
Lets her dreams fly far and wide,
lifts her head and then she sighs.
Once a year at the county fair,
the woman lays out her linens.
Clenches her hands in a panicked prayer
til they hand her the champion ribbon.
Takes them home to the cedar chest,
tucks them in for a decade's rest,
and wishes all could see what she can see. Refrain
Colored threads on ivory cloth,
in and out she pulls them taut.
Lets her dreams fly far and wide,
lifts her head with aging pride.
Gather round the Thanksgiving table,
Grandma always has a place.
Granddaughters come as you are able,
fold your hands and say our grace.
When we tell her all we've done,
she smiles at the rising sun,
and knows she can be just as free. Refrain
Rose Go Round
Words and music by Barb Webber | Written in 1998 | ©2000 Barbara T. Webber
Great Grandma's roses grow round my door,
the roots go back a hundred years or more.
Every June they burst into bloom,
fill the air with sweet perfume.
Down through the generations to me,
given to friends and family,
Great-grandma's philosophy.
A rose needs tending, a rose needs care;
a rose needs a willing heart to share.
Through the driest of droughts and coldest of colds,
a rose will survive and a rose will grow.
A band of commitment on my left hand,
a vow to forgive and to understand,
to soften the words spoken in haste,
to laugh and to tease my friend's embrace.
Love needs tending and loves needs care;
love needs a willing heart to share.
Through the driest of droughts and coldest of cold,
love will survive and love will grow.
Great-grandma's rocker greets me each night.
The worries of the day take a rhythmic flight.
See the world through my children's eyes,
full of challenge, and questions, and grand surprise.
Down from the generations to me,
given to my children and their families,
Great-grandmas philosophy.
A home needs tending, a home needs care;
a child needs a willing heart to share.
Through the driest of droughts and the coldest of cold,
love will survive, and love will grow.
Stand Up, Stand Tall | Words and music by Tom Webber | ©2000 Thomas C. Webber
I was sittin' down on my daddy's knee
and I tell you what he done told me.
He said, "Boy -- there's a hard, cruel world outside
Ya gotta stand up, stand tall and hold onto your pride"
A-singin' --- whoa yeah (whoa yeah)
mmmm --- mmmm --- mmmm
A-singin' --- whoa yeah (whoa yeah)
mmmm --- mmmm --- mmmm
Ya know, there was a time, when people seemed to stick by you.
If'n one person fell down, the others saw them through.
And I know, boy, the world's a different game
but ya gotta believe, believe, there's peoples still the same. A-singin' ...
All men are different, and yet they're still yo' brothers.
And women are your equals, they're yo' sisters and mothers.
And don't get hung up on different cultures or skin.
There's only one world God gave us, and that's the one we're in. A-singin'...
Here's a lesson boy: no matter whatcha do
there's gonna come hard times, and sufferin' too.
Just stick to that path, the one ya know that's got heart,
and trust that happiness will follow, if you keep doing your part. A-singin'...
I was sittin' down on my daddy's knee,
and I tell you what he done told me.
He said, "Boy -- there's a hard, cruel world outside.
Ya gotta stand up, stand tall and hold onto your pride." A-singin'...
Wounded Kingdom | Words and music by Barb Webber | Written in 1987 | ©2000 Barbara T. Webber
Wouldn't it be a loving world if all the prayers prayed were answered by the ones who prayed?
Wouldn't it be a loving world if all the ones who asked were those who gave?
Wouldn't it be a loving world, a wish come true for all of us who pray
if love filled the hurting void and held the wounded kingdom saved?
Look around the world and cry for people trapped outside of Camelot.
No daily bread, no blanket, not even one merciful chance.
Kings and knights cry indignantly and gesture at another's lot,
conspire to guard their coffers and thrust the diplomatic lance.
Holy God of many names, drain our moat of suffering.
Grant us bridges of healing strength to share your bread as our prayer.
Mother Teresa, living saint, feeds the hungered, dries the dying's tears.
Points to a deeper pain of the homeless heart, poorer than the poor.
The rich, the poor, the old, the lame, the never-had-a-chance-to-be.
With Mother's heart a-failing, it's now our crusade.
So churches stand around the world, spired silhouettes against the sky.
Marble and mahogany, dappled with the sun through stained art.
Robes and motions and litanies, collected throughout the years.
Neither riches nor history, can touch the wounded heart.
Holy God of many names, drain our moat of suffering.
Grant us bridges of healing strength to share your bread as our prayer.
Yes, it would be a loving world if all the prayers prayed were answered by the ones who pray.
Yes, it would be a loving world if all the one who asked were those who gave.
Yes, it would be a loving world, a wish come true for all of us who pray
when love fills the hurting void and holds the wounded kingdom saved
when love heals the hurting void and holds the wounded kingdom saved.
Riddleman | Words and music by Barb Webber | Written in 1988 | ©2000 Barbara T. Webber
Ten birds on a rooftop, three flew away,
two flew back, and the farmer shot one.
How many sparrows remain?
Twenty sick sheep standing in a field,
one dies, how many remain?
Riddleman, Riddleman, tell me. (x2)
First he'd ask a question that we all had heard before.
Then he'd change the answer, so we never could be sure
which one was the right one.
Riddleman would laugh high and loud.
Riddleman, Riddleman, tell me. (x2)
Riddleman won't you tell me why this life hurts,
why the hungry heart has fears?
Riddleman, can't we fix it, make the wrongs right,
bring to rest the tumbling tears?
Riddleman, Riddleman, tell me. (x2)
You can tell the way the months will go
by the first twelve days of the year.
So it's been for ninety of my years.
Some things are written in the Farmer's Almanac;
some things are found only in the soul.
No Riddleman Riddleman cannot tell you. (x2)
Ten birds on a roof top, three flew away,
two flew back and the farmer shot one.
Travelers Lullaby | Words and Music by Barb Webber | ©1996 Barbara T. Webber
Heavy darkness falls around the struggling traveler
hiding the path that once seemed so clear.
And he stumbles yet again and this time lays
where he thought he'd never be in all his days.
She reaches out her hand to stroke his hair,
cooing a lullaby of tender care.
"Close your eyes and feel my strength.
Sleep awhile to dream at length.
And know that there is day, to follow night,
and peace is on it's way with gentle light."
Soon his trouble songs discover harmonies.
The load he carries begins to slowly ease.
And his dreams take sail upon a lifting wind,
free to leave and free to come home again.
He sighs as her hand strokes his hair,
hears her lullaby of tender care
"Close your eyes and feel my strength.
Sleep awhile to dream at length.
And know that there is day, to follow night,
and peace is on it's way with gentle light."
And he wakes. And she is gone,
but she left behind her home.
In the parting she whispered an eternity
of understanding and trust, and courage to be.
He remembered her hand within his hair.
Heard her lullaby of tender care.
Closed his eyes and felt her strength.
Slept awhile to dream at length.
And knew that there was day to follow night,
and peace came on its way with gentle light.
And the weary traveler dreams of her at night
And peace comes to him with gentle light.
November 22, 2014 | Between You and Me Lyrics
Keep Walking | ©2010 Barbara Tlachac Webber (words) & Music by BTWebber and TCWebber
There’s a bend in the road,
A curve up ahead,
No clear sight line beyond the yellow thread
The world could end
Beyond that twist
But hope is the reason the road stills exists
So I keep walking
The trees are heavy
The shade is deep
My shadow leaves me alone to weep
Can’t stop to worry
My feet may grow roots
I’d live in the dark, the absence of truth
So I keep walking
I’m on this road
I’m alive and I’m walking
I’m still in the game and that’s enough for me
I’m on this road
Don’t know where I’m going
But this road has my name and it’s my destiny
So I keep walking.
On a hot straight run
I’ve gone somewhere fast
The illusion of water in the road didn’t last
The sun beat down
From its highest peak
My shadow left me alone and weak
But I kept walking
I’m older now
A little wiser maybe
My shadow’s here even when it can’t be seen
A breath of peace
Fills my soul
I know there’s purpose wherever I go
And I keep walking
Chorus
Bridge
Not sure where I am going
Can’t stay where I am
The road behind me
Can’t be traveled again
Chorus
Goodbye Old House | ©2007 Barbara Tlachac Webber
Underneath the fresh paint my bedroom walls are yellow
Golden cabbage roses hang by the bare window
Its midnight in broad daylight and the antique clocks chime
Rusty old voices out of tune and out of time
I’m called sentimental, my sister says it’s so
I just have a harder time moving on and letting go
So many birthday candles, can you hear the song?
Well I hear happy voices of family long gone.
Good-bye old house
Good-bye old friend
I will remember you until my living end
Good-bye old house
Blessings to you
May those who live within these walls come to love you
A trick light in the kitchen, turn it on with a jump and tap
A wooden scar in the cabinet, my brother’s tonka hit that
Last hallway door on the left where daddy closed his eyes
It’s hard to keep on singing when the tears begin to rise
One last look around
One long good-bye
Close the back door
I think I’m going to cry
Chorus
Lazy River | ©2008 Barbara Tlachac Webber & Tom Webber
I wanna float on a lazy river
Let time slide by
I wanna float on a lazy river
Leave my troubles on the riverside
I’ve been running round in circles
People pleasing's what I do
Keep on passing the same old landmines
Same old misguided cues
My feet are singed and black from dancing on
someone else's hot coals
I guess it’s time I tended to
my own burning soles
Chorus
Hand me a worry, I’ll take it in
Give it a home on my own back
Once I have it and call it mine
you can’t take it back
I’m stooped and bent from martyrdom
This journey’s mighty old
Even willow branches break
When the winds blow hard and cold
Chorus
Nothing’s quiet in my own head
All night the phantoms swoop and shriek
Their voices ramble and babble on
Old worries never sleep
Bridge
Imagine laying back on a lazy river
Gazing up into the clear blue sky
I know there’s peace on the lazy river
Floating gently under heaven’s eye
Chorus
All is Right | ©2012 Thomas C. Webber and Barbara Tlachac Webber
When I’m lost twirling in your light brown hair
Finding myself swirling in the stars up here
Heaven knows that I ain’t got a care
Yes this crazy world keeps spinning
But all is right between you and me
Just you and me and my two left feet
Swaying amid the stars to your heart beat
Heaven knows you make me complete
While this crazy world keeps spinning
All is right between you and me
Bridge
Up here among the stars
In your eyes are love and light
That’s all I really need
To know that all is right
My words get tangled and lost in time
I don’t have poetry or pretty rhymes
But Heaven knows I call you mine
Yes this crazy world keeps spinning
But all is right between you and me
Francis | ©2012 Barbara Tlachac Webber
The battered old crusader
Lies still in the dusk
The innocents now gather
Afraid he’ll turn to dust
Who would then lead them
From the depths of their despair
Without Francis in the lighthouse
Fear is everywhere
Lay down Francis lay down
Cry your tears into the ground
Your heart bleeds, even you need sleep
Francis lay down, lay down
Oh this world is crazy
Its flippin upside down
Its spinning out of orbit and
Soon we’re gonna drown
In a sea of avarice
Fed by rivers of neglect
But with Francis in the lighthouse
We hadn’t lost it yet
Some say that he is senile
an old man of the sea
They tell us not to worry
There are pearls within the deep
We resist the mermaid call
Pulling us down among the krill
That’s when we found our Francis
On the shore, lips blue with chill
Chorus
Watch Francis as he lays there
Barely breathing in the dusk
The vigil and the crying is
Really more for us
Oh light your single candles
Climb upon the stony bluff
Show Francis he has taught us
Surely that’s enough
Lay down Francis lay down
Your peace my friend is earned and found
Don’t you weep, just sleep.
Francis lay down, lay down
Chasing Signs | ©2012 Barbara Tlachac Webber
I stood on the edge of a rain cloud
One half of me got wet
Since omens appear on the eastern wind
I wondered what it meant
I’ve been looking for silver linings In the mist of my life
Maybe I’m not so lost on this road side
Just across the state line
I turned to the sky of colors
And it led me true east
When the rainbow faded to nothing
I followed the geese
Then I chased the tumbling leaves toward the autumn of my life
Now I’m lost again on a road side
Just across the state line
Chasing signs
Promises and gilded goals
Chasing signs
They lead me nowhere but old
Some people call me bold and bright
I know that they are wrong
I relied upon the twist of chance
Now live where I don’t belong
See running after rainbows is a whole lot easier
And so I’m lost on a road side
Just across the state line
Chorus
Bridge
I spent too much time looking for signs
Too much time chasing my tale
I want to believe I can trust my own heart
Filled with Love I can’t fail.
Sun breaks through the storm clouds
See the rainbow in the east
I try to resist the urge to go
But it is calling me
There are people in this world like me meant to follow signs
I’m used to being lost on a road side
Just across the state line
Silence | ©2011 Barbara Tlachac Webber (words) & Music by BTWebber and TCWebber
Silence is heavy, an absence of air
A holding of breath til somebody shares
But no words are spoken, no words to hear
Friendship dies slowly in the absence of air
There’s silence between them where joy danced bold
One heart confused and left out in the cold
The other heart burning with justice denied
The stronger the silence, the stronger the pride
One listened carefully hoping to hear
A chance to mend an unknowing wrong
One held words in, perhaps out of fear
Not wanting to ruin a beautiful song
Silence is heavy, an absence of air
A holding of breath til somebody shares
But no words are spoken, no words to hear
Friendship dies slowly in the absence of air
A civil smile and shifting of eyes
They’ve known each other too well to hide
Pain is pain, one burning, one cold
Both are caught in silence’s hold
Bridge
Each is afraid of losing the other
To speak or act too great a chance
Gamble on time, love’s great healer
Atlas Left his Burden | ©2012 Thomas C. Webber
Atlas took off and left his burden on your shoulder
the day the world lost its sheen and your vision grew older
It’s so tempting to cling to those scenes in your rear view mirror
Just breath –
Just breath and smile –
And know –
Your treasure is in the NOW.
Time is a river that carries us forward
It empties itself into this pool we call the present
You’ll drown if you jump and try to swim upstream
Lay back and let it carry you to Beyond Your Wildest Dream
There’s a time for grasping and a time to let it go
There’s a time for laughter and a time for sorrow
Yes the past will catch up when you round that next bend
You’ll find that nothing’s ever lost cuz that’s past is in the end.
There’s never been a golden flower -- that didn’t start as a seed
And those furrows on your face now came from giving and from greed
Just press on forward. Don’t wallow in eddies of regret.
Just breath –
Just breath and smile –
And know –
Your treasure is in the NOW.
At last you let go of that thing on your shoulder
Though your world lost some sheen and your vision grows older
You’ve discovered the truth that the Child’s the Father of the Man.
Just breath –
Just breath and smile –
And know –
Your treasure is in the NOW.
Just breath –
Just breath and smile –
And know –
Your treasure is in the NOW.
Whisper | ©2010 Barbara Tlachac Webber
I whispered a prayer in an old church
Its ceiling the desert sky
At the center of the four winds
Beneath God’s eye
Here I am a pilgrim lost
No more tears to cry
You left my life and I’m wandering
My well’s run dry
They’ve heard so much these walls and sky
Chanted songs and litanies
Now I add my own heart sigh
And pray you home to me
In this barren place of worship
Walls stripped of all design
I understand the whims of man
Are sand within this shrine
I stand upon this sacred ground
Where old prayers shimmer
I only know my love for you
Will endure forever
Chorus
Bridge
My love is like the wildflower upon the altar bare
Tenaciously it survives and waits for you there
Chorus
Lily Marlene | ©2005 Barbara Tlachac Webber
Who’s that woman at the window pane
Watching the children play their games
Still as a statue day and night
Pale as a ghost in the soft moonlight
OH-oh-oh Lily Marlene
OH-oh-oh Lily Marlene
prettiest girl the Northwood's seen
OH-oh-oh Lily Marlene
Once she was a big city girl
Desired by the fashion world
Walt met her on a quiet street
Danced with her swept her off her feet Chorus
When Walt returned from foreign ports
He brought her north to his resort
Dances with her in the deep of the night
Bathed in the glow of the northern lights Chorus
She stays upstairs and waits for Walt
Away from the dandies who waltz about
Fifty years at her windowsill
In fifty years she’ll be there still Chorus