Walt Grace's Submarine Test, January 1967

Walt Grace desperately hating his whole place Dreamed to discover a new space        And buried himself alive               Inside his basement tongue on the side of his face meant                   He’s working away on displacement              And what it would take to survive                   ’Cause when you’re done with this world                                        You know the next is up to you And his wife told his kids he was crazy And his friends said he’d fail if he tried                 But with a will to work hard And a library card He took a homemade fan-blade one-man submarine ride                 That morning the sea was mad and I mean it                Waves as big as he’d seen it          Deep in his dreams at home               From dry land He rolled it over to wet sand          Closed the hatch up with one hand         And pedaled off alone                ’Cause when you’re done with this world                                        You know the next is up to you And for once in his life it was quiet As he learned how to turn in the tide And the sky was a flare When he came up for air       In his homemade fan-blade one-man submarine ride                          One evening When weeks had passed since his leaving                     The call she’d planned on receiving                   Finally made it home She accepted The news she’d never expected                The operator connected    A call from Tokyo        ’Cause when you’re done with this world                                        You know the next is up to you Now his friends    Bring him up when they’re drinking             At the bar with his name on the side    And they smile when they can As they speak of a man Who took a homemade fan-blade one-man submarine ride