His Father Died

His Father Died

His father Died

Lyrics: Walter Zenko

(Verse 1)
His father died
On Shrove Tuesday in ‘45
Hero or coward’s ghost
No one left who’d dare to boast
But one thing’s clear through smoke and fire
He died in Dresden’s funeral pyre
Where phosphorous rained from heaven’s height
And turned his world to endless light

(Chorus)
No casket now, no grave to tend
No memory for time to mend
Just ash and cinders in the snow
That’s all he left, that’s all we know
And those who lived, they held their breath
They built their lives around his death
They needed sons who would obey
To walk the line and not betray

(Verse 2)
They’d seen the crimson rivers flood
Crosses forged from iron and blood
Bludgeon, dungeon, bullet, flame
And yet the torment had no name
The Hun had come, then fled once more
Still stained the earth with total war
And what survived, just barely did
Beneath the silence children hid

(Chorus)
No casket now, no grave to tend
No memory for time to mend
Just ash and cinders in the snow
That’s all he left, that’s all we know
The war was gone, but still it burned
In every glance, in every turn
The sons were taught to kneel and nod
To carry wounds, and not ask God

(Bridge)
Too young to wear a White Guard’s name
Too old to play the Soviet game
Born beneath the Bolshevik sky
Their birth alone a reason to die
So when the gates were cracked and wide
They ran with nothing left but pride

(Final Chorus)
No casket now, no grave to tend
No truth the years could now defend
Just ash and cinders, dimly spread
Among the living and the dead
And those who breathed and those who ran
Carried the guilt of every man
Who died unnamed, with none to weep
Except the sons they swore to keep