LYRIC
COUNTRY BOY- Journeys- Composed By Abie Rotenberg- Journeys 4
I was raised on a Kansas farm where corn and soybean grow
How my family came to be there’s something no one seemed to know
I played quarterback in high school, my mom baked apple pie
Each year we’d fly the stars and stripes on the fourth day of July.
My folks never said much but “did you do your chores today”
Then again from time to time “G-d bless the USA”
I grew into a man with my uncomplicated life
And asked the girl from down the road, Caroline, to be my wife.
I was a country boy living the all American dream
Hard at work, drinking hard, not much in between.
Never gave much thought to matters of the spirit or the soul
Wouldn’t trade my way of life for a bushel full of gold.
But one night in the attic in an old and dusty crate
I found great-grandpa’s diary, till dawn I read it straight.
Turns out he fled from Russia back in 1893
The oldest child to my surprise of a Jewish family.
I showed it to my parents, they said “son yes it’s true,
But its just ancient history, don’t let it trouble you”
First thing great-grandpappy did when he set foot on this land
Was say I pledge allegiance to good old Uncle Sam.
I was a country boy living the all American dream
Hard at work, drinking hard, not much in between
Never gave much thought to matters of the spirit or the soul
Wouldn’t trade my way of life for a bushel full of gold.
But I was more than taken back, my thoughts out of control
I said I got to know more, put my wedding plans on hold.
So I drove up to the city, told the Rabbi what I knew
He said “Please let me teach you what it means to be a Jew.”
He taught me about Torah, and the mitzvos 613
And how our lives have meaning if we keep ourselves pristine.
Day after day he challenged me, “come home, I know you can”
He seemed so sad when I said “I can’t change the way I am.”
They all ran out to greet me, my dear folks and Caroline
So happy I was home, that I hadn’t lost my mind.
“Son”, my daddy said, “While you were gone, I made a pact
That I’d buy you a brand new truck the day that you came back”.
We each have moments in our lives that show G-d’s providence
But mostly we just shrug them off as mere coincidence.
When I went to get new plates down at the DMV
The license plate they gave me read, GET613.
I’m still a country boy but now my life’s a dream come true
Studying Torah in Jerusalem with the Western Wall in view
My mind is filled with matters of the spirit and the soul
Wouldn’t trade my Yiddishkeit for a bushel full of gold.
I’m still a country boy but now my life’s a dream come true
Studying Torah in Jerusalem with the Western Wall in view
My Hebrew’s got a country twang but no one makes a fuss
And now I mean it when I say the words, “In G-d we trust.”