God is Watching You

 

God is Watching You (11th January, 2016)

 

You were like the police when we bought penny sweets,

Counting mine out - you knew I’d sneak two or three-ee,

You had a bee in your head about honesty,

I will never forget how you said so clearly, 

‘God is watching you,’ and it struck a chord in me.

 

There were years upon years, then we hit puberty,

There are things you do, when you think no-one can see,

And I’ll lay a bet you did the same thing as me,

But I’ll always recall you said so quietly, 

‘God is watching you,’ and it shamed the heart of me.

 

But time never stands still, and soon we were eighteen,

And grown up in the eyes of the world legally,

You got a job - I went to university,

And in time both of us lost our virginity,

‘God is watching you,’ were the words that haunted me.

 

I got it engraved, right on the back of my soul,

That terrible phrase that kept haunting my wo-orld,

I got it tattooed, right on the top of my heart,

Those horrible words I knew would tear us apart.

 

I cannot remember where I was when I heard,

That you’d killed someone and were in prison interned,

For all of the things that I wished I could rewind,

It was only my faults that ever sprang to mind,

‘God is watching you,’ was supposed to keep you kind…

 

As I stood in court on the day of your trial,

I wondered at you, living your life in denial,

All those times you said no, all those times you held back,

Pulling taut elastic that one day would spring back,

‘God is watching you,’ but he does not have your back.

 

Darling, God may forgive, if you’re down on your knees,

But that doesn’t quite mean you can do what you please.

Yes, God may forgive, but the jury and me-ee -

There are human laws we believe in, you see-ee?

 

So here we sit at the end, the end of the road,

There are a few concrete things you think that you know,

But as I stare at the face of my shattered world,

Once again, I’m just that little sweet-stealing girl,

‘God is watching you,’ - from my lips the words unfurl…

 

For a while, it’s almost like you haven’t quite heard,

And then your head springs up as if you’re quite disturbed,

There’s darkness in your eyes, and I know you can tell,

The crime you committed has led you straight to hell, 

You say, ‘How I wish he’d been watching me as well.’

 

Jennifer Pickup