Rules of the Road
Too late to turn back, too soon to rest
We just keep on moving, hoping for the best
Drifters and dreamers, sages and fools
Know all the answers and
Make all the rules of the road
And now you know
The first rule and the best:
Take what you need, leave the rest
So far behind and so far to go
We’re just caught in this traveling show
And there’s no way out
Nobody knows it, nobody cares
We just play our parts
Alone or in pairs
Victor and vanquished, love-starved and lame
Play out the pieces and
Count up the points at the end of the game
And now you know
The first rule and the best:
Take what you need, leave the rest
Beggars plead their cases, babies cry
Underneath a cold and steel-blue sky
We’re just caught in this traveling show,
And there’s no way out
©1995 Glen F. Nemeth • All Rights Reserved
1992. I always had a difficult time explaining this song, except to say
that everyone makes rules for getting through life; these may differ, but
some have a common thread, and one of these is the importance of moderation
— "Take what you need, leave the rest."
Unfortunately it is a rule that gets lost in our little competitive
games, and nobody seems to know this or give it much thought. At the time,
I was reading Spinoza's Ethics, particularly moved by his assertion
that Free Will is not merely the power to choose, but to know why we
choose. Otherwise, we are acting blindly. Heady stuff for a song, I know,
but I don't write from the heart alone.
— Glen
Rules of the Road