Of The Earth Up at the crack of dawn With the crowing of the cock Go to gather the eggs As the old

hens scold and squawk. Feed the horses, milk the cows, By the rising morning sun It seems you've worked half a day -But it's only just begun. Time for breakfast -- not store-bought Bacon, eggs, and homemade biscuits Cherry jam, put up last Fall And some plums canned with the pits. You fix the leak in the barn Mend the hole that's in the fence You clear the weeds from the ditch That have grown so thick and dense. Drive twenty miles into town Just to get needed supplies Hurry back to mow the fields Just as soon as the dew dries. Then it's time for dinner -The main meal of the day She's one helluva cook -Is all that you can say. You start baling up the hay Now that it's all cut down Get a drink of sweet water From the well below the ground. Still a few more chores to do Before the evening sunset. You have pride in knowing that You work hard for all you get. Time for supper -- something light -The time to relax and talk To have a cup of coffee -Maybe take a moon-lit walk.

You hear the frogs in the pond And the crickets in the grass Look up at the scattered clouds Wonder what weather's forecast. A man of earth -- it's tough -Few days off and little pay It's in your blood, and you know That there is no better way. Del Abe Jones 80s