The Dutchman

The Dutchman's not the kind of man
 To keep his thumb jammed in a dam
 That holds his dreams in
 But that's a secret only Margaret know
 But when Amsterdam is golden
 In the morning, Margaret brings him breakfast
 She believes him
 He thinks the tulips bloom beneath the snow
 He's mad as he can be
 But Margaret only sees that sometimes
 Sometimes she sees her unborn children in his eyes
 Let us go to the banks of the ocean
 Where the walls rise above the Zuiderzee
 Long ago, I used to be a young man
 Now dear Margaret remembers that for me
 Now the Dutchman still wears wooden shoes
 His cap and coats all patched with the love
 Margaret sewed him
 Sometimes he thinks he's still in Rotterdam
 As he watches tugboats down canals
 Calls out to them when he thinks
 He knows the captain
 'Til Margaret comes to take him home again
 Through unforgiving streets
 That trip him though he holds her arm
 Sometimes he thinks he's alone and calls her name
 Let us go to the banks of the ocean
 Where the walls rise above the Zuiderzee
 Long ago, I used to be a young man
 Now dear Margaret remembers that for me
 Now the winter whirls the windmills in
 She winds his muffler tighter
 They sit in the kitchen
 Tea with whiskey keeps away the dew
 He sees her for a moment
 He calls her name out, she makes the bed up
 Humming some old love song
 She learned it when the tune was very new
 He hums a line or two
 They hum together in the night
 The Dutchman falls asleep
 Then Margaret blows the candles out
 Let us go to the banks of the ocean
 Where the walls rise above the Zuiderzee
 Long ago, I used to be a young man
 Now dear Margaret remembers that for me
 Let us go to the banks of the ocean
 Where the walls rise above the Zuiderzee
 Long ago, I used to be a young man
 Now dear Margaret remembers that for me