Time To Go
Journey Beyond, Embracing Change: Time To Go by John Vanderslice
Lyrics
We pushed the horses as long as we could
We exerted our efforts with the horses until their limits were reached.
Over Cooley Pass into Sierra Woods
We traveled over Cooley Pass and entered Sierra Woods.
Burned the wagon wheels for heat, for food
To survive, we burned the wagon wheels for both heat and food.
We cut down Timothy Gant who died so twelve
We cut down Timothy Gant, who had died, to enable twelve others to proceed.
Could make it through
Repetition of line 4.
Time to go
The recognition that it is time to leave.
We’ll never make come back
We won't return; it's an irreversible departure.
It’s time to go
Reinforcement of the idea that it's time to depart.
Try to make it to the shore
Attempting to reach the shore, possibly symbolizing a safe destination.
It’s time to go
Repetition of the theme that it's time to leave.
And now I know it’s time to go
A realization that the departure is necessary.
In Bakersfield we found a planned community
In Bakersfield, we encountered a pre-planned community.
With plentiful two-bedrooms and full amenities
Describing the community with ample two-bedroom houses and complete amenities.
We sold the horses, we sold our guns
We sold our horses and guns, indicating a shift in lifestyle.
A specter of Timothy Gant appeared on my lawn
A ghostly presence of Timothy Gant urges the narrator to escape.
And told me to run
An explicit command from Timothy Gant to flee.
Time to go
The acknowledgment that it's time to depart.
We’ll never make it back
We won't be able to return; a sense of finality in leaving.
It’s time to go
Emphasizing the departure and being banished to the cracks.
Been banished to the cracks
The consequence of being banished to the cracks, perhaps symbolizing hardship.
Of molten ash
A metaphorical reflection on not realizing the value until it's too late.
Don’t know what you had
The realization of the significance only when it's time to go.
Till it’s time to go
A final reminder of the inevitability of departure.
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