Lithuania

My story starts with a letter I read
From my great uncle Pavilas and this is what it said, he said
Come to your homeland, the place you've never seen
You'll find the birds here sing and the grass is green
We have bells in steeples and the people all believe
If you come to Lithuania, you will never want to leave

So I decided that my father and I
Would set a course east and take to the sky
But when the day came and our plane landed down
We saw none of the things that Pavilas had told us of the town

We saw run down houses, gravel pits
Abandoned Cars not worth a shit.
Children building castles of dust
Near playgrounds left brittle by rust
You've never seen such dilapidation
As the place where they shared their recreation
And I've never bought the American Dream
Until the day I saw the things that I have seen
After half a day drive, our feet met the ground
Of the place where Pavilas never left town
We met our relatives and we helped them drink their wine
Surprised to find a family much happier than mine
They laughed and smiled about the things they'd never need
By the end, I pitied them less than they pitied me

When the time came to leave, my father and I
Packed the car tight with gifts and said our goodbyes
As the car drove off, I heard church bells ring
I saw the grass was green and I heard the birds begin to sing
I heard the birds begin to sing
I heard the birds begin to sing

Come to your homeland, the place you've never seen
You'll find the birds here sing and the grass is green
We have bells in steeples and the people all believe
If you come to Lithuania, you will never want to leave