You Don’t Know How Lucky You Are (Honoring Thu Van Nguyen)
From the Album Elders’ Wisdom; Children’s Song
Dad was a fisherman
We lived by the sea
With five sisters
Dad, mom, and me
We were Catholic
So when the communists
Took control of the north
We chose to resist
You don’t know how lucky you are
To live in a free country
First the Japanese
Then came the French
Then the Americans
By plane and by ship
We lived in times of war
Dressed in black, brown, or green
When the planes soared above
We would not be seen
You don’t know how lucky you are
To live in a free country
At the market Dad would shout
Face down to the ground
Pretend you are dead
Pray the bombs don’t come down
By day we belonged
To the armies of the South
By night the Vietcong
Traveled about
You don’t know how lucky you are
To live in a free country
We all went to war
We didn’t have a choice
We didn’t know why
We didn’t have a voice
Sent to the DMZ
A sailor at sea
When the country fell
No refuge for me
You don’t know how lucky you are
To live in a free country
Waves of people pressing down
So many could not swim
Nothing but a mass grave
When the war did end
Took us to the Philippines
Got transferred to Guam
I missed my family
You don’t know how lucky you are
To live in a free country
1,500 women and men
Returned to Vungtau
They put us in one room
They made us write down
What position we were in
What rank and where we served
After that we were sent
To a place no one deserves
You don’t know how lucky you are
To live in a free country
Worked eight hour days
Mixed mud to make bricks
Two bowls of rice a day
Thousands died or got sick
With beds of bamboo
30 men to a room
Your life was on the line
If you talked or if you moved
You don’t know how lucky you are
To live in a free country
Had to study Karl Marx
Learn about Ho Chi Minh
With Jesus in my heart
I had a special friend
I hid the rosary
On a ledge in my room
At the end of the day
Asked God to guide me through
You don’t know how lucky you are
To live in a free country
After five long years
Dreams became reality
Was released from the camp
To join my family
Invited to the States
Became a citizen
So thankful am I
My new life has begun
You don’t know how lucky you are
To live in a free country
Words & music by Larry Long
Copyright Larry Long 2005 | BMI
*Lyrics collectively written with students at Cedar Ridge Elementary in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Inspired by Thu Van Nguyen.
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