Last Stand

When I got to Jackson, I was sleeping
My hat, the angle it should be
Dined on a table spread with muslin
Jawbone, fry bread, and cowpeas

I was soothed by the grooves of epic etchings
I was a boy in blue and had a steed
And the cavalry
Will carry me
Wherever these inflated shoulders lead

With only as much as suggestion
I'd take down whichever pigeon flew my way
And come in from the north, just like before
But found the tempt of gold as my pay

I'm a man, not unlike any of my subjects
Who took a leap in haughtiness and haste
As my pockets raged
I met a distant face
A chief and his nation 'cross the bank

Doubled as an end and a beginning
The stream of fate began to swell
And to understand is beyond me
The tendency
To heroize the way that general fell

He's just another tender, screaming baby
Convinced by himself and those in lead
And felt the crushing blow
Undeniable force
Of a stoic beast, provoked finally