Ladies Of The Line

Ladies Of The Line
by Tom Chapin
© 1976 The Last Music Co. (ASCAP)

Think of a sunlit harbor
At the end of a burn-out day
On a broken wharf an old man sits
And watches the ships come in
They are ladies of the line
And they know once again
It's time for change
And seasons end and then begin again

Rusty from the passage
Christened in foreign seas
Carrying unknown languages
And possibilities
Tonight they'll dock near the navy yard
And be stripped by the union tree
But for now they are ladies of the line
All promise and mystery
They are ladies of the line
And they know once again it's time for change
And seasons end and then begin again

Though his eyes are dim he remembers when
His hands were on the wheel
And the girls he knew and the flags he flew
When his life was real
And when the sun has set
And the lights come on
And the last of the big ones pass
He gathers his line, his coat and shoes
Wanderin' home at last
They are ladies of the line
And they know once again It's time for change
And seasons end and then begin again

This song appears on Tom Chapin's At The Turning Point CD.

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