Monkey on a Chain - Courtney Marie Andrews

Motorbike on the island

Steering like an angry hornet

I don’t belong in this ritzy palace

Show me your shanty

Show me your corrupted churches

There’s a pearl in the mud

There’s a penniless child next to a mansion in the sun

There’s a monkey on a chain

While his puppeteer pulls his strings for change

I’m a honey-haired lonely traveler

You’re a rice-picking lonely sailor

And despite the language barrier

I appreciate the gesture

The museum is filling up with flies

A rosary from the man with ebony eyes

The barefoot children stick out their hands for coins

The barefoot street men advertise their tricks and their noise

There’s a pearl in the mud

There’s a penniless child next to a mansion in the sun

There’s a monkey on a chain

While his puppeteer pulls his strings for change

I’m an empty bar storyteller

You’ve just made enough for dinner

And despite the language barrier

I appreciate the gesture