Folk Dance

"The Folk Dance" On the backs of well formed muscular miners Working hard in the trenches on a daily basis For the men who need coal, fat cats and such Dirty, sweaty and tireless toil try to wear them down Dehydration and soot inhalation runs rampant An epidemic throughout lower Appalachia The jobs they need, for their survival indeed Their meager paychecks insist they must do it for the love Ten to fourteen hour shifts and then they collapse on the bed Six days of the week it's merciless work to anybody Sunday comes and they can take a day of rest A certain buzz going around electrifies every last person Timing is just right to surprise the deserving workers Since people have prepared to throw down a hoe down! The good old fashioned type with the elongated dresses In classic style with seemingly everybody statewide participating With a do-se-do and an allemande left good country spirits spin uproariously Twisting and turning to chanted rhythms on a hard packed dirt floor Inhibitions are nowhere to be found amongst these family friendly folk Arm in arm with strangers they know each other wants a fair time Soon the energy starts rocking to the extended company outside The hootenanny has grown too big for just one barn, they are tireless "Well Shucks." says the fat cat "I don't work them hard enough!" Watching from afar he fumbles with his pocket watch just a little miffed A raucous good time for a genuinely good people The orchestrator slows it down some and pulls out his granddaddy's autoharp Relaxing to an old fashioned twang, the couples do their thing Getting closer to each other rocking calmly to and fro Feeling four minutes of tenderness with filled loving concentration Because those seconds are the fleeting ones Then the banjos bring the pace back up to complement rowdy fiddles Moving and twirling, elation fills the air for a chance at remembering Why they are alive for each other, ingenious in its simplicity While Merriness is their motto And not even the coal mines can make them forget that