Harder Cards

(craig wiseman/michael henderson)

Well the hammer fell down on a forty-four primer
Now there's one less problem in south carolina tonight
Wrong or right

She just looked at me as she finished her tale
And her blank expression went another shade pale of grey
There was nothin' to say
In the shadows of her face, i saw the scars
That you get when you live where love is hard
And she said

Don't you sit and judge me
From some high and mighty seat
Don't you shrug off
Until you've walked a mile in my bare feet
'cause there are people that you pass by every day
With harder cards than yours in life to play

Well i put the cuffs on her
And i put her in the car
And i walked in and he was on the floor
Stone dead
Shot in the head

There were whiskey bottles and dope by his chair
And a starving baby with nothin' to wear
But tears
You know, the picture was clear

He had finally pushed her farther than the line
And the badge i wore had lost all of it's shine

Don't you sit and judge me
From some high and mighty seat
Don't you shrug off
Until you've walked a mile in my bare feet
'cause there are people that you pass by every day
With harder cards than yours in life to play

Well i stood there thinkin' how justice was blind
But i didn't see any and i could see just fine
And i made up my mind

So i took the cuffs off her
And i took her back in
I wiped off the gun
And wrapped it in his right hand
Where it should've been

And the morning paper told in black and white
Just another senseless case of suicide
Oh, just a suicide

Oh but don't you sit and judge me
From some high and mighty seat
Don't you shrug off
Until you've walked a mile on my beat
'cause there are people that you pass by every day
With harder cards than yours in life to play

Yeah the hammer fell down on a forty-four primer
Now there's one less problem in south carolina tonight