The Shifting Whispering Sands, Pt. 1 - Johnny Cash

I discovered the valley of the shifting whispering sands
While prospecting a western a western State
I saw the silent windmills the crumbling water tanks
The bones of the cattle picked clean by buzzards bleached by the desert sun
I stumbled over a crumbling buckboard nearly covered by the sand
And stopping to rest I heard a tinkling whispering sound
And suddenly realized that even though the wind was quiet the sand did not lie still
I seemed to be surrounded by a mystery so heavy and oppresive
I could scarcely breathe
For weeks I wandered aimlessly in the valley seeking answers to the many qustetions
That raced through my mind
Where was everyone why the white bones the dry wells the barren valley
Where people must have lived and died
I sat down and buried my face in my hands and resting
I learned the secret of the shifting whispering sands
How I managed to escape from the valley I don't know
But now to pay my debt for being saved
I must tell you what I learned out on the desert so many years ago

(When the day is hardly quiet and the breeze seems not to blow
One would think the sand was resting but you'll find this is not so
It is whispering softly whispering as it slowly moves along
And for those who stop and listen it will sing this mournful song
Oh sidewinders and the horn toe on the thorny chaparral
In the sunny days and moonlight nights the lonely coyotes yell)
How the stars seem they could touch you as you lay and gaze on high
At the heavens where you're hoping you'll be going when you die

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