Inspired by Eric Raymond’s essay of the same name
A crude live recording from NYC2023 is available at the bottom of this page. With a few tweaks, because performers do that sometimes.
This game: it used to be fun
To watch the clouds in the sky
And see in each fluffy one
The bunny or fortress passed by
To name for each castle and whale
The cobblers and kings living there
To tell a whimsical tale
Of people who dwell in the air
But as those same tales take their wings
The power of names stretches forth
And soon all those cobblers and kings
Have their own lives of meaning and worth
So there's only...
Holding up the sky
Still holding up the sky
To crawl so men may fly
Each step to verify
Though decades may pass by
Always holding up the sky
To yearn for rest and still ask why
To heed what toil and pain have found:
Who'd build a castle in the sky
Must plant the feet on solid ground.
To test and test each strand and curl,
Anticipate how wind may blow,
To know with fear the wide strange world,
And little trust what lore you know.
So you can be...
Holding up the sky
Still holding up the sky
To crawl so men may fly
Each step to verify
Though decades may pass by
Always holding up the sky
To hold like kin those too who bear
A fellow cloud or solar ray.
To leave the future warnings clear
Of all you wish you'd known today..
To keenly spot and stoutly face
The worms that lurk beneath the deep.
To know and choose when to let fall
A flake of snow you cannot keep.
And you will be...
Holding up the sky
Still holding up the sky
To crawl so men may fly
Each step to verify
Though decades may pass by
Always holding up the sky
There once was a dream of the youth
And a game that children could play
What remains is a glorious truth
Is that such a high price to pay?
