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The Raven and the Phoenix

from Monkey Comfort by Penelope Swales

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lyrics

The Raven and the Phoenix
© Penelope Swales

The Raven and the Phoenix
Lived together side by side
One lived inside the other
Till the birthing of the child
One curled around the other
And the tiny Phoenix grew
To become the fiery child
We all knew

The Raven and the Phoenix
Traveled together here and there
Festivals and parties
Desert lands and mountain air
Phoenix learned to walk and totter
Eat and drink from many hands
Charmed the hearts
Of many souls
In many lands

La-da-da-da

The Raven and the Phoenix
Lived together on the hill
In the sunshine and the moonlight
In the windy and the still
One fine day it happened
Raven heard the cries and came
To find her pretty Phoenix
Running towards her all in flames
Life was forever changed

When life changes suddenly
An amputation or a death
An accident, am injury
In the spacing of a breath
You stand on the other side
Of a line you can’t re-cross
You look across at your life as it was

Like a severed end inside you
You can’t join it up again
You can’t slip that familiar
Life on again
Like the coat
That still bears the warmth
The imprint of your body
Colder now
You must travel on

The Raven and the Phoenix
Lived together in the ward
Realisation in the corridor
Crying together on the floor
The anguish of the mother
Late at night her demons come
The anguish of the daughter
“Mummy where did this
Pain come from?”

We anticipate the scarring
We shake our heads and sigh
But maybe there’s
More dangerous scars
Hidden in behind many eyes
Many worse things can mar childhood
Unwelcome hands can pry
Bruises fade and hidden tearings
Are not noticed by and by

If one thing the Phoenix saw
We loved her and we came
And many stood around her bed
Wishing we could bear that pain
Hardship testing friendship
Is such a telling time
Raven, I wish I could do more
To prove the strength of mine

The Raven and the Phoenix
Went back home to the hill
Life is forever different
Yet maybe they’ll be stronger still
Many long months yet to pass
To heal the impact of the flame
And yet the finest steel
Passes through the fire
Again and again and again
Ooh, the circle of seasons
Ooh, this time next year
Ooh, the circle f seasons
Ooh, this time next year
We’ll still be here

La-da-da-da

credits

from Monkey Comfort, released July 7, 2003
Vocals, guitar, stomp box, handclaps - Penelope Swales
Double Bass, backing vocals, handclaps - Barry Hill
Handclaps - Stephen Swales

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Penelope Swales Boolarra, Australia

Penelope Swales has been articulating the human condition with passion and humour for 30+ years. She sings about politics, love, friendship, the unbreakable bond between us and dogs and the impact of the Internet on society. She won the 2019 Alistair Hulett Songs for Social Justice Award with “Cambridge Analytica”. “The Ides of March in Christchurch" was short-listed for the same award in 2020. ... more

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