I wake in the dawn of the cold misty dew light Kickin' and drinkin' warm milk while I'm cryin' In the sterilized smell of my unsure surroundings Feelin' warm hands as I'm passed back and forth And I'm wigglin' and crawlin' and reaching out slowly Strange sounds at my elbow but no way to make them The shapes of big colors and lights all around me Comin' to grips with the cold hard linoleum Pushin' and pullin' as I travel in circles Unsure on my knees as I crawl towards the table Unsteady on legs as I'm findin' my balance My legs stretchin' out and a wish to go walkin' Out in the road in the gravel and sunshine Out on the earth with my feet in the short grass The shadows of barn and garage learnin' quickly A switch to my bottom and on the bed cryin' In the dawn of the mornin' the vague early mornin' At the start of the daytime of life Standin' out here by an old pile of lumber A long shiny track that's still silently ringin' And the last southbound freight that was two o'clock passin' And I in my Levi's my cigarettes twisted In the arm of a t-shirt I'm smart like a rooster You stand here in front of me heavily breathin' Your long brown hair matted with sweat as we're silent The beads like last Christmas that lay on your bosom I feel the exploding of some innerself That's more lasting and longing than the carcass surrounding The bursting of love that is pleading now for you That creeps in our eyes and it colors our thinkin' And tingles our hands and our arms and our foreheads As the flesh is now talkin' in words that are quiet In the hot afternoon as we're makin' our plans As we walk through the daytime of life A baby comes cryin' and laughin' and kickin' And drinkin' warm milk as it's handled so gently And afternoon comes to see three other babies Playin' and runnin' their bodies fast growin' Sundown comes sneakin' around by the back door My joints gettin' stiffer and movin' more slowly My hair gettin' thinner and turnin' to driftwood Then goin' downhill in the still of the evenin' So peaceful and gentle I'm not in a hurry Just passin' the grave of a friend I once played with The pine needles soft underfoot as I'm walkin' And children come runnin' to guide their grandfather And if you don't mind I'll just sit in the shadows And rest and go slowly I'm gettin' so tired My head on a pillow a doctor now holdin' my wrist As he's feelin' the veins barely throbbin' My grandchildren standin' around by my bedside And now through the mist I can faint see them cryin' But I will be comfortable here on the cushions of silk all around me I think I must sleep in the cool deep And it's midnight