Beginner's Luck

Painter in your linen shirt, come teach me how to see

Perfumed with fresh turpentine, imported oolong tea

Swirl me up in yellow ochres, pigments ruddy rose

You see what you look for and you go where no one goes

Sailor in your schooner, come teach me how to sail

The sky is full of ribbons and the water's milky pale

I've never seen an albatross or felt the tempest's tongue

Sail until the sailboat splinters, sail it while you're young

I'm never done

I'm never done

Gardener, come walk with me and teach me how to grow

Fragrant herbs, peonies, and poppies all aglow

Honour true persistence, the sheer will to survive

Every bud and blossom, seed, and sapling demands life

I'm never done

I'm never done

Judge, meet me in the courtroom and teach me to decide

The honest course of action with prejudice aside

Cloud and feather, salt and sugar, lion's tooth and nail

Weigh heavy down on either side of your golden scales

I'm never done

I'm never done

I'm never done

I'm never done