When I was quite young
I had learned to fear
I was taought to listen
But not to hear
From my mother's arms
I was cruelly torn
And they whipped my ass
On the day I was born
Little brother died
At the age of five
They said, he lost his soul, he was not
Baptized
But the river flows
And the heavens cry
And we'll all be drowned
In the river, in the river
In the river, in the river
I remember my sister
On her saddest day
When the boy she loved
Had been called away
Seems he gave his life
In a foreign land
Still my sister cries
She never understands
Now the world is hard
And the cowards lie
And the fool loves war
And the gentle die
But the river flows
And the heavens cry
And we'll all be drowned
In the river, in the river
In the river, in the river
Well, we built a dam
When the first rains fell
We built it high
And we built it well
But the waters rose
Like a beast from hell
Now my house is gone
And the town as well
So we gather here
For a silent prayer
For the lives we lost
And the love we shared
Still the river flows
And the heavens cry
And we'll all be found
In the river, in the river
In the river, in the river