It Won’t Take Long

They said some men would be warriors
And some men would be kings
And some men would be owners of land
And other man-made things
And false love as the eternal flame
Would move some to think in rings
And gold would be our power
And other foolish things

But you who dream of liberty
Must not yourselves be fooled
Before you get to plea for freedom
You have agreed to be ruled
If the body stays a shackle
Then the mind remains a chain
That'll link you to a destiny
Wherby all good souls are slain

And it won't take long
It won't take too long at all
It won't take long, and you may say
"What has that got to do with me?"
And I say "You mean to tell me that's all?"

Of three men in a desert wandering
One is knowing and two are scared
They say time is in the river
But the river is not there
Dry in spirit dry in body
Two will lend themselves to death
And in grief one weeps into his hands
And drinks his bitter tears

'Cause it don't take long
It don't take too long at all
It don't take long, and you may say
"I don't know what you're talking about,"
And I say "You mean to tell me that's all?"

And as I stand before you now
I am hopeful in my rage
You know love has finally called for me
I will not wilt upon its stage
But still smaller than my nightmare
Do I print upon the page
Do we have to live inside its walls
To identify the cage?

'Cause it takes so long
Why does it take so long
But it takes so long, and you may say
"I don't really care what you're talking about,"
And I say, "Are you trying to say you don't belong?"

I am my mother's daughter
But I have seen myself in you
It's this blessing that I follow now
And so I must speak true
I dreamed of thousands dying
It was you and you and you
And while the city sleeps so quietly
There is something we must do

And it won't' take long
It won't take too long at all
It won't take long, and you may say
"I don't know if I wanna know what you're getting at,"
And it makes me wanna say, "So long."

Because grief will come in measures
Only grief alone will know
And you'll see it on your family
On your own face it will grow
And they'll try to keep you hungry
Then they'll tell you to eat snow
You know pride can be a moving thing
If we learn the strength of "NO!"

And it won't take long
It won't take too long at all
It won't take long, and you may say
"I don't think this has anything to do with me,"
"But did you ever think you could be wrong?"

At noon on one day coming
Human strength will fill the streets
Of every city on our planet
Hear the sound of angry feet
With business freezed up in the harbour
The kings will pull upon their hair
And the banks will shudder to a halt
And the artists will be there

'Cause it won't take long
It won't take too long at all
It won't take long, and you may say
"I don't think I can be a part of that,"
And it makes me want to say
"Don't you want to see yourself that strong?"

Division between the peoples
Will disappear that honoured day
And though oceans lie between us
Lifted candles light the way
Half will join their hands by moonlight
The rest under a rising sun
As underneath the sun and moon
A ritual'd wailing has begun

And it won't take long
It won't take too long at all
It won't take long, and you may say
"I don't know how to be a part of what you're talking about,"
And it makes me want to say, "Come on!"

And beware you sagging diplomats
For you will not hear one gun
And though our homes be torn
And ransacked we will not be undone
For as we let ourselves be bought
We're gonna let ourselves be free
And if you think we stand alone
Look again and you will see:

We are children in the rafters
We are babies in the park
We are lovers at the movies
We are candles in the dark
We are changes in the weather
We are snowflakes in July
We are women grown together
We are men who easily cry
We are words not quickly spoken
We're the deeper side of try
We are dreamers in the making
We are not afraid of "Why?