Big John Donovan

Big John Donovan six foot three

Had a chest the size of a tree

His voice was deep filled with a croak

From all the years when he used to smoke

Big John Donovan liked a drink

His thirst would fill a Belfast sink

He had giant hands and size twelve feet

And lived on a diet of spuds and meat

Big John Donovan from Donegal way

Took me under his wing on my first day

The work was hard my back was breaking

Big John said there’s no room for faking

Big John Donovan took a shine to me

I was just a boy with no history

He said don’t let life be an empty shelf

And you should always think for yourself

Big John Donovan never stayed too long

He said life is more than a single song

You must turn your mind into a library

It will open you up and set you free

Big John Donovan working his last day

Said to me don’t get stuck in your ways

Be a wanderer boy, keep your mind alive

Be true to yerself and you’ll always survive.

©JMN2023