Ruthann Schulman Baler

Walk Down

Ben Speaks Louder Than Words was founded by Judy Giovangelo after the death of her 18-year-old son, Benjamin. This grassroots nonprofit is giving voice to young adults and their families and raising awareness about suicide prevention, anti-bulling initiatives, and acceptance, tolerance, and teen empowerment. Thank you, Judy and Ben Speaks, for helping to bring much-needed change to our schools and communities.

The road is ours
To walk down together
Try to leave your side
And meet me at the center line
The road is hard
But we can make it better
So walk down; walk down
And take a stand

Little boy sits at the edge of his lawn
Waiting for a friend to come along
They don’t know what he can see
The world –  just a little differently
He has a big heart made of gold
But he’s not cool or so he’s told
He wants badly to fit in
But he’s not good enough for them

The road is ours
To walk down together
Try to leave your side
And meet me at the center line
The road is hard
But we can make it better
So walk down; walk down
And take a stand

Young man stands in the middle of the road
Looking for a dream to call his own
Looking up high, looking down low
Everywhere it’s no, no, no
He sees color on a black and white screen
He sees good when the world is mean
He wants badly to fit in
But he’s not good enough for  them

Too white, too black, too tall, too fat, too smart, too dumb
Too straight, too gay, too left, too right, too scared -- run, run, run
Too shy, too loud, too square, too round, too dull, too bright
Too fast, too slow, too young, too old, too this, too that, well it's not right

The road is ours
To walk down together
Try to leave your side
And meet me at the center line
The road is hard
But we can make it better
So walk down; walk down
walk down, walk down,
walk down, walk down,
And take a stand

Rhythm guitar & harmonica: Ruthann Schulman Baler
Harmony: Kim Jennings, Judy Giovangelo, Michelle Puntillo   
Lead guitar & vocals: Joe Fredette
Keyboard: Chris Joyce
Bass: Dave Roberts
Drums: Mike Carlucci

© Ruthann Schulman Baler January 2012