A wise old man once said to me,
"Do you know how it used to be,
Before the days of You and I,
And all the years of days gone by?
Before a bird will fly, a rat shall die."
"Now long ago and far away,
When day was night and night was day,
'Twas all around then the people would pay
Homage to that which kept evil at bay:
Before a bird will fly a rat shall die."
"And then one day in the hearts of erring,
They decided to end the burden sharing,
And with the need to survive, so went there, caring,
As they spoke of destruction, with no malice sparing,
Before a bird will fly, a rat shall die."
"So go out and tell the whole world, you!
Tell them that these lies are true.
Tell them what they must now all do,
Pray this not be their motto too;
Before a bird will fly, a rat shall die."
