North

In the north were the corons The earth was coal The sky was the horizon The men were underground miners Our windows looked out on similar windows And the rain soaked my schoolbag But when my father came home, his eyes were so blue I thought I could see the blue sky I learned my lessons with my cheek against his arm. I think he was proud of me He was generous like the locals And I owe what I am to him in north, they were the corons The earth was coal The sky was the horizon The men were underground miners And that was my childhood, and it was a happy one In the steam of the washing machines And I had slag heaps for lack of mountains From above I could see the countryside My father was a "blackface" like his parents My mother's hair was white They were from the pit, as one is from a country Thanks to them I know who I am in north, they were the "corons The earth was coal The sky was the horizon The men of the miners At the town hall on fair day A photo of Jean Jaures And every glass of wine was a pink diamond Set against a backdrop of silicosis They spoke of '36 and the blasts of firedamp Accidents down in the hole They loved their profession as one loves a country It was with them that I understood In north, they were the corons The earth was coal The sky was the horizon The men of the underground miners The sky was the horizon The men of the miners