Sixteen Lanes Of Highway
Murray McLauchlan Lyrics

I once had a swamp when I was younger
In my youth, I owned a swamp area

The ducks and geese would pass in the fall and spring
Wild birds, ducks, and geese would fly over my swamp in the autumn and spring seasons

Bulrushes sighed and the frogs would roar like thunder
The reeds in the swamp would rustle, and the sounds of the frogs would be very loud

In the evening you could hear the blackbirds sing
During the evening, the sweet melody of the blackbird's song would be heard

And to the east, rose a briar hill above me
Directionally, there was a hill made of thorny bushes to the east of where I was situated

And we’d sit up there and watch the clouds roll by
We used to sit on top of the hill and observe the clouds moving across the sky

We didn’t know that we’d be saying so long
At that time, we had no idea that we'd have to say goodbye to that habitat

To the frogs and the birds and the dragonflies
We were oblivious to the fact that we'd be separating from the frogs, birds, and dragonflies

Now paradise is 16 lanes of highway
The swamp area where I used to live has now transformed into highways with sixteen lanes

And the peace is gone and the cars roll by each day
The quietness and serenity of the place has disappeared, and now cars constantly pass by

And the house in which I grew now affords a lonely view
The home where I spent my childhood now offers a depressing sight to behold

It overlooks a 16 lane highway
The house now has a view of the huge sixteen-lane highways

And the tractors came and the trucks and the heavy graders
Large machinery, such as tractors, trucks, and graders, were brought in to tear down the swamp area

And in a month, they tore that swamp apart
Within a month, the whole swamp area was destroyed

And they left an ugly scar while we stood watching
We were mere spectators to the destruction, and they left behind an unappealing sight

For a progress a mind of planner’s work of art
The destruction was deemed necessary to cater for the needs of society due to the visionary planners

And the people that I knew all started moving
The people who lived around the swamp started to leave the area

And the houses store there empty row on row
The houses were forsaken, and they lay vacant next to each other

And the ones that didn’t take the easy money
Those who chose not to sell their lands for financial gain

Were later sold out short and forced to go
However, afterward, they were eventually short-changed and forced to leave anyways

Now the city’s gone on by to take some more land
The city continued to advance, seizing even more lands for development

And the ducks and geese ain’t been around for years
The ducks and geese, which we used to see flying over the swamp area, have vanished for many years now

And the kids who come of age in those apartments
The youngsters who grew up in the nearby high-rise apartments

Will never understand my bitter tears
Will never comprehend the immense sorrow I feel due to the loss of my previous surroundings

They’ll never see a thing that wasn’t put there
They'll never witness anything naturally occurring, everything they see has been artificially created

They’ll never see a wild thing growing free
Wild organisms growing freely can never be observed by them

And they’ll never know a quiet day of living
They'll never have the privilege of experiencing a peaceful existence

God help all the kids but please help me
They may need God's support, but I'm the one who needs it most