Hornets

Two of us on a forest path, one of us shook the tree
One of us saw the nest come down
And turned to wonder where his friend could be
And three hours later when the news came on the phone
John was in the hospital, he never did quite make it home

And I wondered how those hornets missed me
How they knew I was a bystander when they went after Johnny

Hornets threaten no person, unless they're provoked
Harmony dies a sorry death on a predatory slippery slope
John Wayne at the Alamo – a hero's last stand
John Wayne in a magazine
– said they selfishly tried to hang onto their land
The apologist's prayer is conceived after the smoke has long cleared
Nearer my God to me in this godless frontier

Oh mother say it's okay, it gets worse every day
It's a stone's throw away
Oh let it live in the trees
Let it hum in the breeze in a world on its knees

If you get stung in late September it's just a last gasp to survive
Remember the good 'ole days before the collapse of the hive
And drunk on the power of this still born bitter fruit
The news cycle hour won't reveal where they buried the loot

And I still don't know how those hornets missed me
Trying to remember the way I thought it was going to be
I'm trying to remember the way I thought