I got chewed out by my mom
At the age of ten
I saw the anger of one priest in church
At the age of ten
I saw a needle and some powder
For the first time at the age of ten
At the age of ten everything fell down all at once
On my small face and shoulders
And I got on four legs
Like an ox
Like a dog
Like a pig (ooh-hoo-hoo)
(dig it, uh)
And bit my teeth into the soil
And saw blood and flesh
At the end of the mouthful of soil
Like that black military boot
And I thought
(uh, that is)
What have I done to you?
What have I done to you?
What have I done to you?
(yeah, that is)
Look at these boots I wear today and know
The man that I am
Look at these boots I wear today and know
The life that I live
Look at these boots I wear today and know
Who I defend
Look at these boots I wear today and know
That I will not kill pigs
That I will not kill fellow man
(bap, yeah)
Preacher
Teacher
And mother
When I was ten
Could see
If he'd look close enough
In my eye
The personal hell it took to put on these boots
To wear these boots
To fit in these boots
And see
Clear down the sidewalk ahead
That boot
And commend me
That I didn't marry needles
But what the goddamn preacher
Teacher
And mother
Didn't see
Was their own boots
The dirt on their collar
When they turned their heads
To the priest's after-church
After preaching to me
What not to do
So what have I done today?
What have I done today?
What have I done today?
Now look at these boots I wear today and know
The man that I am
Look at these boots I wear today and know
The life that I live
Look at these boots I wear today and know
Who I defend
Look at these boots I wear today and know
That I will not kill pigs
That I will not kill fellow man
Life wasn't