Counting Down the Hours

Innocence, it don't come easy, in a sense, it never will
Accidents mean no one's guilty, ignorance means someone's killed
So I asked our Mr. Mellor how to get to where one's going
And he points to his survival and he points me down the road

And I go on, wondering if I've got a soul
And counting down the hours 'til it goes

On a dark, wet night in April, on a street in Jersey where
I went looking for some writing that I knew would not be there
And a punter from the Pelhams and the police in the rain
Were concerned more with a car than with the fact the light had changed

But after listening all morning as I drove down 95
To a story of detainees who were barely kept alive
I could deal with trying to process pigeons acting like they're doves
But not with interference from the power lines above

And I go on, wondering if I've got a soul
And counting down the hours 'til it goes

Oh, precautions, yes, precautions
But if you're playing with a gun you could kill someone
And in the dark it's hard to know a friend
But I'm not angry, I won't be forever angry

As I'm walking toward tomorrow with a rifle in my hand
And I'm thinking about New England but I'm missing old Japan
And a mountain in California where a spring runs hot and cold
And if I told you I felt ageless, would you tell me I'm not old?

And I go on, wondering if I've got a soul
And counting down the hours 'til it goes