Remember Jerry 'cross the street? He never said much But I've placed my life in his hands Time and time again He's no longer a boy, Ma But I don't know how to say He'll never be a man
And Thomas, who stayed with us last summer He was part of my squad Was as straight-laced as ever But we were knee-deep in wickedness I hope he met God
And Andy was my partner Always making me feel small So I had a man's resentment for him But he was truly very kind Putting my safety first Because he left me behind to re-wrap my bandages to stop my stump from bleeding, right? Oh, and we fought see, my pride was hurt I was no pantywaist, I still had a leg But he just laughed, said he'd come back so, I've been lying in bed alert 'cause I'm still waitin' for that man lying face-down in the dirt
But Ma, I'm coming back to Canada And I only want you cryin' happy tears But know that I won't visit our little town Not for a long, long while And maybe never our street Not that home-road of the twelve ambitious young men and little Peter, sneaking into the bustle While only fifteen
Mother, please believe me I love Newfoundland But I'm heading over to Alberta So try to pretend I'm fully gone as well
Please don't tell ~ the only one to survive the shell was your boy who's gone through hell
I hope the rest were sent to heaven.
For the Newfoundland families, where entire streets would have no sons because each was taken and left in the battlegrounds.