Three Mules

THREE MULESby Al StewartThree mules came over a hillThey were dragging a cartCreaking, it seemed to be falling apartLaden with millions of dreamsIt weighed more than they thoughtThey never noticed the wheels getting caughtThey pulled on, staring aheadWith blinkered eyes and lowered headsHpoing that all would be fineI see them nowTime out of timeRamsay and Stanley and NevilleWere the names of the mulesEach wore a bridle encrusted with jewelsAnd though a murmur of voicesWas rising behindEach laboured onAnd they paid it no mindThey pulled on with never a doubtPast boulders and holesTill the road petered outAnd giving a snort they sat downWaiting for somebody elseto come roundAnd from this are our lives writ largeFrom the beach at DunkirkTo Pickett's ChargeAnd it's hard to go backafter coming this farDown the roadThree mules looked over a fenceAt the field beyondGreen as a forest it shone in the sunInto the stillness they brokeLike a stone in a pondAnd kicking the gate downThey brayed at the groundAnd pulled on tugging a dreamOut of a smile and into a screamAnd tossed the damp soil all aroundUntil the whole field turned muddy brownAnd from this are our lives writ largeFrom the beach at DunkirkTo Pickett's ChargeAnd it's hard to go backafter coming this farDown the roadAh, but it's not very easy now being a muleI don't believe you appreciate all that we doLook at this long and unfortunate faceTry to imagine that you're in my placeThis is my natureAnd to it I have to be trueThree mules came over a hillWith a sorrowful airThough we've been judged, they saidIt's hardly fairAll that we did was for youAnd the good of the causeThen they went back to the sound of applauseThey went back into the nightWhere a sickle of moonLeft a trickle of lightAnd while we lay under our roofsThe whole night filled upWith the beating of hoovesAnd from this are our lives writ largeFrom the beach at DunkirkTo Pickett's ChargeAnd it's hard to go backafter coming this farDown the roadAnd from this are our lives writ largeAnd every dayIs Pickett's ChargeAnd it's hard to go backafter coming this farDown the road