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I Was Beautiful

Am   G   Am


      Am                   G
I was beautiful, my Jackie told me so,
             F                  E7
But that was long ago, and far away.
          Am                   G
But I was beautiful, he was my soldier boy, 
           F            E                    Am
We had one taste of joy, then they sent him away.
          C                   G
And I was terrified, I sat up half my nights, 
          F                                        E7
The radio said the fights were terrible, many were slain.
               C                          G
And then, that golden day, I answered the telephone, 
           F             E          Am
My soldier boy was home, home safe again.
                   G                            C
And we went to the pictures, and we went to the sea. 
         E                                      Am
We had a life of our own to live, my Jackie and me.
        G                                       C
Oh, the summers came and went, and the children grew.
            E7                                  Am   G   Am
I was still beautiful to him and love was still new.

We were older now, the children moved away.
Then came the longed-for day when Jackie retired.
At first, he seemed content, he did some gardening,
There was a garden swing that he rewired.
But as the time went by, he seemed to drift away,
He found it hard to pay attention, his memory grew dim.
The kids all rallied 'round, they loved their daddy so,
He didn't seem to know, they were strangers to him.
Though we'd been to the pictures, and we'd been to the sea,
We'd had a life of our own to live, my Jackie and me,
Oh, the summers had come and gone and the children grew,
I was still beautiful to him and love was still new.

I was terrified and I was all alone,
The children had their homes, I know that's life.
And my soldier boy who used to kiss my hands
Now fails to understand that I'm even his wife.
He sits and stares at me, and there is nothing there,
He doesn't seem to care what happens to him or to me.
But I was beautiful, he was my soldier boy,
We had our taste of joy in my own memory.
But did we go to the pictures? Did we go to the sea?
Did we have a life of our own to live, my Jackie and me?
Oh, the summers came and went, and the children grew,
Was I ever beautiful to him? Was love ever new?
Was I ever beautiful to him? Was love ever new?

(Words and music by Tom Paxton, 1991)

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