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WHAT WE HAD
©Gary Bowman

‘Twas in the spring, The bluebirds sang, In the West Virginia hills
Hand-in-hand, We would walk, Along the streams and rills
Gentle breeze, Beneath the trees, Your hair was black as coal
When I looked into your eyes, I could see your soul

The seasons passed, All too fast, We went our separate ways
I walked along the mountain paths, And thought about those days
It hurt so bad, To lose what we had, And so, I wrote this song
You don’t know what you’ve got, Until it’s gone

Big Coal came, with cash in hand, Not so long ago
They blew away the mountaintop, Yeah, they got their coal
The trees were ripped, The land was stripped, On ‘Desolation Hill’
The streams that fed the rivers, Were choked beneath the fill

The beauty of a mountain, Can be forever lost
When we take more than we need, And disregard the cost
A few will make a profit, While others burn their coal
When you rip apart the mountain, You tear apart our soul

‘Twas in the spring, The bluebirds sang, In the West Virginia hills
Hand-in-hand, We would walk, Along the streams and rills
Those mountain streams, and memories, Live only in this song
We don’t know what we’ve got, Until it’s gone