Two Trains

How did courage always keep you on the run
carrying that Red Cross in the Italian sun?
To get the rush danger brings
You'd meet bulls and freaks inside the rings
It's cut to the bone, jump into the blast
But first, one must last, one must last

There were two trains coming
To where hope meets its second chance
One could easily take you home,
The other was bound for France
You smiled bravely to waiting soldiers
They knew which one you'd ride
They were merely lost boys at your side

At Sylvie's table at rue de l'Odeon
You read simple praise for comrades gone
Il faut d'abord durer
Everyone was a man that day
No matter how your fate gets cast
First, one must last, one must last

Then there were two trains coming
Rolling for the women and the pain
One blew the whistle 'cos the hour got late
Another track was announced for Spain
You drank slowly though the closing sign was broken
Peasants fought to be your guide
Women danced, capturing you with their faces, they left your hands untied

You wrote a chilly ending no one could have known
Doctor's son saves all lives but his own
What did you see so strange
When you stared out at that purple western range?
Grace under pressure unsurpassed
Surely you'd stand fast, you'd stand fast

Then there were two trains coming
So little time to pack
One could no longer take you home
The other wasn't coming back
They were shocked at what this life could do
With all the battles you'd survived
They were merely lost boys at your side