The Boy from Rye

The boy from Rye came down on the train
With his parents and his sister
Where the summer lawns roll down to the sea
And the air is softer than a whisper

The girls from school in our summer tans
Suddenly self conscious and uncertain
All in a row we arranged ourselves for him
Waiting to see if we deserved him

One too fat, one too thin
One too many flaws to measure
Impossible to live inside your skin
And serve at someone else’s pleasure

Our parents dozed after tennis and a swim
And disappeared into their gin and tonics
And there we were, alone with him
His smile knowing and ironic

One too strong, one too smart
But none immune to love or summer
One by one he broke our virgin hearts
And set us one against the other

We dreamed of boys and kisses on the lawn
We yearned to feel that mystery inside us
And there we were with the summer nearly gone
We’d let that mystery divide us

I lost you – you lost me
So long ago we barely can remember
And the boy from Rye took the train back home
And the world moved on into September