THE LONG CRAWL (OUTLAW COUNTRY) - Levi Stoker
The ditch was 6 feet deep where the pickup rolled
In the midnight rain on a county road
Mud in my teeth and kerosene in my chest
Dragging my body through the creek bed rest
No doctor coming through the pine wood dark
No street light shining with a friendly spark
I dug my nails into the red clay bank
Pulling my weight while the shadows sank
Every inch was a war, every breath was a fight
Clawing my way back into the light
When you can't stand up and you're stripped of speed
You learn what a man's made of in his hour of need
You look at the dirt and you kiss the ground
And refuse to let the darkness lay you down
Yeah, it's a long crawl out of the valley below
Inch by inch through the dark and the snow
They can break my legs, they can tear my skin
But they can't stop the fire that's burning within
My hands are bleeding and my knees are torn
But I'm reaching for the ridge where the sun is born
Oh, the mountain's high, but I'm taking the call
Yeah, I'm making my way through the long crawl
Spent 10 long months on a hospital bed
With a heavy iron frame around my head
They said I'd never walk down the road again
Just a broken down relic of what might have been
I looked the doctor straight in the face
Said you don't know the stubbornness of this human race
I stood up slow on my two weak feet
And walked right out to the blacktop street
It's a long crawl out of the valley below
Inch by inch through the dark and the snow
They can break my legs, they can tear my skin
But they can't stop the fire that's burning within
My hands are bleeding and my knees are torn
But I'm reaching for the ridge where the sun is born
Oh, the mountain's high, but I'm taking the call
Yeah, I'm making my way through the long crawl
Drag your body, drag your soul
Out of the pit and the bottomless hole
It don't matter how slow you gotta move along
As long as your spirit is standing strong
It's a long crawl out of the valley below
Inch by inch through the dark and the snow
They can break my legs, they can tear my skin
But they can't stop the fire that's burning within
My hands are bleeding and my knees are torn
But I'm reaching for the ridge where the sun is born
Oh, the mountain's high, but I'm taking the call
Yeah, I'm making my way through the long crawl
Inch by inch
Through the red clay, still moving
Long crawl
