Poppa Flew Away
Words and music by Chapman James
Deep smiling eyes over whiskers
Big hands that kept stealing my nose
Spicy scent of a big-brown-bear-bathrobe
Are as far as my memory goes…
Momma called Poppa our hero when the army called Poppa away
There was a sad thing they called war over yonder
And Poppa went off to be Brave
Each night I was empty for answers of Poppa the war and the why
So Momma would fill me with wonderful stories
And sing me a soft lullaby….
C1: She sang…Poppa flew today in his bird under heaven
He chased the bad away in a land called Nam
And when they are free, we’ll all be together
Here where we…..belong
I remember one morning in winter Momma sat at the foot of my bed
With Poppa’s brown bathrobe hugged tight round her shoulders
And a shake in her voice as she said
“Poppa can’t come back to see us. He has to stay up in the sky”
I said “If Nam’s not free, can’t they come and live with us?”
Then she hugged me real tight and she cried….
C2: She said….Poppa flew away in his bird up to heaven
He’s going there to stay and rest his wounds
And when you are grown just try to remember
He gave his all… for you
BRIDGE: Now the dead must bury the dead
And what’s left alive goes ahead
To learn to love others as much as themselves
And live for their children instead
Now I keep Poppa’s robe close beside me and I’ve seen his name there on the wall
And my anger is gone for the ones who scoffed at him
Cause I know that he gave me his all.
So when someone cries out for their freedom I pray that the heavens will hear
And spare them the pain that we all must go through
When a war is apparently near
C3: You see…My Poppa flew away in his bird up to heaven
I’ll meet him there one day between the skies
Once in a dream he told me that wars were but….
Tears in God’s own eyes
Copyright 1990 Polhemusic
Lyrics Submitted by Chapman James