Cold Night in Mississippi

9-5-05

Last night one am heard the doorbell ring

Woke me from sleep/been dreaming of mysterious things

Trudged through the house peeked out the window blinds

And of all the things I’d imagined I still was surprised to find

A young black man shivering from the chill
past the front gate car lights were flashing up the hill

So I cracked the door asked him what did he need

“Sir I’m lost and out of gas, could you help me please?”

Though I heard the words it wasn’t his face that I saw

Instead a ghost of my past whose memory still filled me with awe

(chorus)

It was a cold night in Mississippi 25 years haven’t erased the memories

I was a young man lost and he was an old man tossed away by society

Our paths crossed that night in Mississippi

My first instinct had been to tell him “go away”

bad things happen with strangers You read about it everyday

But the debt I owed wouldn’t let me turn away

So I said “just a minute, I’ll get dressed and we’ll be on the way”

He seemed embarrassed as we drove up to his car

Said “my name’s Paul” as we shook hands under the stars

And as I poured the gas into the empty tank I wondered

What force of fate had led him to my door instead of another’s

His face in the flickering light brought back the image of the old man’s

2005 turned into 1980 like time had poured out of that gas can

(chorus)

I’d been an angry boy fighting to have my way

Deciding to escape my troubles I’d left Gulfport on that frosty day

Too far past Jackson to hike back when I‘d run out of fuel

Too far away from the next town/I was kicking myself for being such a fool

Then a pickup made a U-turn came up to me

An old farmer black as the night said “get in here before you freeze”

He drove me to the next town so I could get my tank filled

The warmth of his concern made me forget about the December chill

It was a cold night in Mississippi

He was a man of pride and dignity

Didn’t care about the color of my skin

Just about the trouble I was in

We were both ready

For our paths to cross in Mississippi

We talked like family who’d been separated

His presence calmed me, my spirit was elevated

Though we were so different, he felt like a long-lost friend

And that hour I spent with him I will remember to the end

Cause when it came time for goodbyes I found my faith repaired

A miracle happened in the headlight’s glare

I had forgotten so I told him my name

He quivered in the moonlight as he said “Praise the Lord, mine’s the same”

The engine sputtered, then it roared to life

And it was time for Paul and me to go our separate ways in the night

We paused for a moment clasped hands with nothing else to say

Cause after 25 years the debt I’d owed had finally been repaid

From that cold night in Mississippi

25 years didn’t erase the memory

Of a young man lost and an old man tossed

Away by society, our paths crossed that night

That cold night in Mississippi

I’m sure he’s gone, but I cherish his memory

We shared a name while he was here

And after all these years

His kindness stays with me

From that night in Mississippi