Watershed Stories, by David L. McIntyre
as sung by the Prairie Pride Chorus

Track #11 - Small Town
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I'm talkin' 'bout a small town, I'm talkin' 'bout a place I loved to hate,
Couldn't wait to leave it behind.
Everybody knew everybody else,
"Like a book" they said "I read ja like a book."
Now I tell them, I think they should know,
There's a chapter that nobody's read, 'round here.
(Pokey little buildings, dusty gravel roads, people at their windows, lookin' down their nose.  
Tell'n ya how to think and tell'n ya what to wear, You're livin' in a fish tank, pretendin' not to care.)
Wanna turn the page, finish the story.

Let's talk about a lonely boy, workin' hard to keep a secret or keep a friend even when he's speakin' his mind.
Let's talk about a lonely girl, making her way in the world,
Holding inside private joys, private pain.

The little boy with his hair so neat;
The little girl playin' marbles in the street;
He dresses paper dolls in pinks and greens;
She wears her brother's army jacket & jeans.

"Just a phase," they say, "You know it's just a phase.
It'll pass, just give the kid a little time."
Now I tell them, I think they should know
There's a chapter that nobody's read 'round here.
Wanna turn the page, finish the story.

You see that boy with the toothpick arms,
You see that girl with her rough and ready charms,
He's too polite to ever be a real man.
She throws a faster ball than any guy can.
(So her mother says...", "so her dad says...", "the neighbour says...")

"Just a phase," they say, "You know it's just a phase.
It'll pass, just give yourself a little time."
So I tell them, I think they should know
Some things never change.

I'm thinkin' 'bout a small town.
I'm thinkin' 'bout the place I had to leave,
To achieve a life of my own.

People pressured me to fit into their mold.
Hard to see at times their hearts were made of gold.
I should tell them, I think they should know,
They're a part of my story and I'm part of them.

(Pokey little buildings, dusty gravel roads, 
Cozy little houses, not quite a la mode.
People in their pickups wavin' down the lane
Headin' for the co-op, just before the game.)
Now I can turn the page, and the story goes on.