How Long

(album: This Is The Day - 2001)

When you look in to a child's face
You are seeing all the human race
And the endless possibilities there
Where so much can come true
And you think of the beautiful things
A child can do

How long can a child survive
How long if it was up to you

When you think of all the money spent
On defence by the government
And the weapons of destruction we build
We're so sure that we need
And you think of the millions and millions
That money could feed

How long can you hear someone crying
How long can you hear someone dying
Before you ask yourself why
How long will we hear people speaking
About missiles for peace and just let it go by
How long will they tell us these weapons are keeping us free
It's a lie

If you saw it from a satellite
With its green and with its blue and white
The beauty of the curve of the earth
And the oceans below
You might think it was paradise
If you didn't know
You might think it was turning
But it's turning so slow

How long can you hear someone crying?
How long can you hear someone dying?
Before you ask yourself why
How long will it be till we've turned
To the tasks and the skills that we'll have to have learned
If we're going to find a place in the future
Have something to offer where this planet is concerned