Cathie Ryan

The Wild Flowers

Cathie Ryan


'Twas the wild flowers I preferred
Who owed nothing to nobody
But blossomed in the ditches
And made their own way in the world

'Twas the wild flowers I admired
Who never done nothing to you
But driven from the garden
Sang their own songs in the spring

You can have your lily, you can have your rose
That were taken and broken and bred by men
They were grafted and lamed
Twisted and tamed

But the wild flowers I enjoyed
They had nothing to do with you
They flowered by the roadside
And wore their own colors in the sun

That were there before you, will be there after you
That will out, that will out like your own true nature
You can try, you can try
That you will never defeat

The wild flowers I enjoyed
They had nothing to do with you
Banished from the garden
They made their own way in the world

They sang their own songs in the spring
And wore their own colors in the sun