Rain On The Scarecrow

Rain On The Scarecrow

(John Mellencamp/George M. Green)

Scarecrow on a wooden cross,
blackbird in the barn
Four hundred empty acres
that used to be my farm

I grew up like my daddy did,
my grandpa cleared this land
When I was five I walked the fence
while Grandpa held my hand

Rain on the scarecrow,
blood on the plow
This land fed a nation,
this land made me proud

And son I'm just sorry
there's no legacy for you now
The crops we grew last summer
weren't enough to pay the loan
Couldn't buy the seed to plant this spring
and the Farmers Bank foreclosed

Called my old friend Schepman up
to auction off the land
He said John it's just my job
and I hope you understand

Well calling it your job, ol' hoss
sure don't make it right
But if you want me to
I'll say a prayer for your soul tonight

And Grandma's on the front porch
with a Bible in her hand
Sometimes i hear her singing,
"Take me to the Promised Land."

When you take away a man's dignity
he can't work his fields and cows
There'll be blood on the scarecrow,
blood on the plow

Well there's ninety-seven crosses
planted in the courthouse yard
Ninety-seven families
who lost ninety-seven farms

I think about my grandpa
and my neighbors
and my name
And some nights I feel like dyin'
like that scarecrow in the rain

Rain on the scarecrow,
blood on the plow
This land fed a nation,
this land made me proud
And son I'm just sorry
they're just memories for you now

John Mellencamp