THE CIRCLE (Song for Layla Al-Attar and Los Olivadios)

Who killed this woman, this artist, this mother
Who broke the candle and snuffed out her light
Along with her husband and wounded their children
And sauntered away like a beast in the night

"Not I," said the soldier, "I just followed orders
And it was my duty to do my job well"

"Not I," said the leader, who ordered the slaughter
"I'm saddened it happened, but then war is Hell"

"Not us," said the others, who heard of the horror
And turned a cold shoulder on all that was done

In all the confusion, a single conclusion
The circle of sorrow has only begun

Straight to the circle on Sunday
Down through the canyons they come
Bearing names of their mothers and daughters
Names of their fathers and sons
Stolen away with no warning
Never to ever return
On El Rio Del Muerto
All the bridges are burned

Los Desaparecidos
Lost in the darkness alone
Gone from the face of the Earth
With no trace left behind to mark with a stone
And the faces of Los Olvidados only survivors recall
But for the pain and the heartbreak
Did they matter at all?

Slowly the circle of sadness
Spins in the plaza mayor
Lonesome remains of the madness and pain
In a world gone insane in a war
And a song for the broken survivors
Dancing alone in the dark
With the silence of Los Olvidados
Like a hole in the heart

Los Desaparecidos
Lost in the darkness alone
Gone from the face of the Earth
With no trace left behind to mark with a stone
And the faces of Los Olvidados only survivors recall
But for the pain and the heartbreak
Did they matter at all?