A Place at the Table

If you get it in your head you’re gonna marry my daughter
I ain’t gonna jump for joy,
But I’ll give her away and I’ll dance at your wedding
Like you’re any other hometown boy.
And if you take my job you’d better believe
I’m gonna know the reason why,
But I’ll defend your right to an honest day’s work
And I’ll do it till the day I die.

CHORUS
For I follow a man who ate with lepers
And the blind and the poor and the tax collectors,
People in jail and them that fail
And them whose luck has flown.
Set a place at the table for the heartbeat,
Set a place at the table for the bone.
No one at this table eats alone.

If you steal my horse in the dark of night
I’ll curse your sorry head,
But if then I learn your children starve
I’ll bring them meat and bread.
For I’ve got my mind and I’ve got my fist
And you know I’ve got my pride,
But if I’m not man enough to bend
I’d best get off this ride.

CHORUS

If I chance to hear you’ve got
Another wee one coming soon,
I will set my mind on me own dear lass,
Me sun and stars and moon.
Oh I may not like your politics,
And I may detest your name,
But I’ll grit my teeth and I’ll buy you a pint
And I’ll toast you all the same.

CHORUS

© 2025 by Elizabeth Alexander