This is a song by a friend of mine, Erdman Tuemp of Lillooet BC.
His song echos a problem in almost all the small towns of BC - there needs to be some substantive change to allow youth to remain in the towns and to have youth be interested in staying.
A large motivation for why I left Lillooet in 2004 was that I could not see a future for my kids in the town. I could not see the teen years being anything positive.
Now if I could only get Erdman to make an MP3 of this song, our send me the chords......
A TOWN WITHOUT CHILDREN
A town without children
Lays deep in this land
Where waters are flowing
The old take their stand
Against new beginnings
Afraid to arrange
New forms of employment
Afraid of all change
The old are officials
On government pay
They fear any change would
Make them go away
The old made careers with
The jobs that weren’t there
They built on relief that
Was based on their care
(ch) They think they’re important
With what they believe
While holding positions
Their children all leave
The old were sincere in
Their care for the lost
But somehow they lost track
Of who pays the cost
The old are officials
Who fear any change
They know their own limits
And limit the range
Their
Few children roam there
The old do their shopping
All stooped full of care
From holding positions
That drove the young out
The old are the righteous
Who never knew doubt
(ch) They think they’re important
With what they believe
While holding positions
Their children all leave
The waters are flowing
The land fills with Spring
The flowers are blooming
With songbirds that sing
The old cling to old ways
The young go away
Officials are always
Important that way
A town without children
Is dreadful at best
The old are officials
Who limit the rest
The government pays with
No jobs to be found
And so these officials
Won’t turn things around
(ch) They think they’re important
With what they believe
While holding positions
Their children all leave
The sun’s always shining
On fields made to grow
A town without children
Has no where to go
Officials are well paid
To stop what may come
For those needing jobs that
May help feed the young
Officials are objects
That do not know life
To keep their positions
They feed endless strife
They block all the options
That others may find
They block all the children
Because they are blind
(ch) They think they’re important
With what they believe
While holding positions
Their children all leave
In towns where they rule
The people with children
Will not be their fool
With families leaving
The old will remain
To walk down their
To walk there again
The government pays them
To keep the pretence
That governance trumps what
Is just common sense
The cities are growing
As towns have to shrink
Because of officials
And what they all think
(ch) They think they’re important
With what they believe
While holding positions
Their children all leave
This
With old folks all day
With government pensions
They’re happy that way
With old folks officials
Who climb every rung
This
For anyone young
They block any jobs that
Young families need
To cling to positions
From which the old feed
They care for beliefs that
Keep old folks where they
Make towns without children
To keep them at bay
(ch) They think they’re important
With what they believe
While holding positions
Their children all leave
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