Road to Valhalla

The first thing I saw that I hadn't before Was a pathway up into the hill A thin string of white running into the light Oh, I can remember it still And there were a few, at least one or two Already out there on the track Woman or man, nobody ran Nobody ever looked back I tagged on behind; we were all of a kind At least, well, we were at the start But day followed day, more joined the fray With so many more taking part The path became wider. Any outsider Was viewed with a clear distaste Maybe it was, or even because Of, a fear of being displaced? Somehow the climb and the passage of time Widened the treacherous road Memories burned, as slowly we learned That people like talking in code We found how our music could sooth or inflame From songs we sang round the fire We didn't know Bach, we didn't know Blues We didn't know who ran the choir However esteemed, the steeper it seemed The boulevard into the sky And I had to smile at the rank and the file And the solitary wandering guy The first of the pack to take to the track Who'd shown us the meaning of valour Who, seizing the day in so subtle a way Opened the road to Valhalla