Photography

from Western Reserve by Howard Simon

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lyrics

Photography

There’s a photo we keep on a bookshelf
Our daughter at the shore
She’s halfway through a cartwheel
Who could ever ask for more?
There’s a photo I saw in the paper
A toddler face down in the sand
The waves threw him out of a life raft
That no country allowed to land

I can’t meet my glance in the mirror
I can’t look myself in the eye
In my safety, my warmth and my comfort
As children continue to die

There’s a photo I keep in my office
My daughter at the park
Between the slide and the swing set
She’s happy as a lark
There’s a photo I saw in the paper
A child in a cage
And of course I found it horrific
Then I turned to the local news page

I can’t meet my glance in the mirror
I can’t look myself in the eye
With the freedom to go where I want to
As children continue to die

Who have we become? Who are we?
Complaining about the rain
Blind to the world around us
Ignoring the terror and pain

There’s a photo I keep in my mind’s eye
My daughter on the lawn
Camellias in bloom all around her
It’s a beautiful summer’s dawn
There’s a photo I saw in the paper
A young girl with fear in her face
As the tear gas swirled around her
For the crime of seeking a safe place

Can you meet your glance in the mirror?
Can you look yourself in the eye
With the peace you take for granted
As children continue to die?

credits

from Western Reserve, released August 22, 2020
Howard Simon: acoustic baritone guitar, vocal
Derek Bianchi: bass, drums, electric guitar, guitar synthesizer (strings)

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about

Howard Simon San Francisco, California

I am a San Francisco-based singer-songwriter. My songs are about love (romantic and otherwise), family, morality and mortality. If there is a common thread to my songs, it is the people we love, the desire to do right, and the hope and fear, the peace and the struggle that constitute life bring wonder in addition to its joy and sadness, and sometimes loss. ... more

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