(Mary Chapin Carpenter)

Heros and heroines are scarcer than they've ever been
So much more to lose than win the distance never greater
Way back when you made history by flying planes across the sea
Embarking on your odyssey
You put away the danger
Heaven bless the one who flys
A pioneer on frontier skies
The world was dark and your only mark
Was the light of the northern star
I imagine what was in your eyes
The seeds of rust and days gone by
Your wings hang in a gallery sky I wonder how you're flying

Way out on the western plains
The snow drifts high and the dust wind burns
The chinooks blow their winds
Across the mountains
A life that's never safe and dry rodeos and riding high
Ladies and their men get by on six guns and white lightening
Heaven bless them on the road those drifters and their dreams of gold
The world was wide and a cowboy's song could span the whole horizon
I imagine what was in your eyes
The dust and the dirt under out law skies
A piece of land and a stubborn mind were the only things worth having

Now they say the moon is dust and ash and California's made of cash
We're waiting for those hills to crash into sparkling waters
Rain and snow and sun and wind
You roamed the earth and you spread your wings
Long ago my hero's dreams belonged to all God's creatures
Heaven bless the ones who sleep
The ones who laugh and the ones who weep
Heaven bless the one who keep their bearings strong and certain
And Lord help the fool who said
You'd better quit while you're ahead
A dreamer born is a hero bred on earth and up in heaven
And Lord help the fool who said
You'd better quit while you're ahead
A dreamer born is a hero bred on earth and up in heaven