The Pusher   (Copyright (C) 1982 by Ernest Clark)

    D                               Am
One day there came a pusher walking down a street,
C                             D
Looking for a girl he'd never known.
D                            Am
Saw a dozen children playing in the park,
C                D
Now to but one  alone!
       C                        D
  In a while a little lady grew tired.
      Am                           D
  She found a bench to get off her feet.
      D                           Am
  The pusher saw at once that his chance had come,
  C                        D
  Sitting in the very next seat.

The pusher learned her name, it was Radiant,
Her parents lived out Thus-and-Such Way.
After he'd befriended her he started to tell
Of the long-lost Princess of the Milky Way.
  Whose adventures were magical and thrilling
  As she fought to deserve her mighty throne.
  But long ago a sickness came to strike her down;
  In her hand lay a ruby-red stone.

But her memories remain, said the pusher,
Preserved in her gem to this day.
Waiting for a little girl whose purity and love
Would make for them a home to stay.
  And the pusher pulled out a lovely ruby
  Which he gave to the girl with a kiss.
  "When older and wiser, little Princess,
  Remember me when you look at this."

'Twas dark when her parents found Radiant
Asleep on a bench in the park.
All unharmed, but the story that she told to them
Sent a manhunt searching through the dark.
  But their quarry had eluded them already;
  For he worked pushing starships to near-Cee.
  His ship was already pushing far, far away
  Flying to the world Amity.

Radiant grew up to be a woman,
And left fairy tales behind.
But the splendor that her stranger had shown to her
Left permanent imprint upon her mind.
  And after four decades came the pusher
  To hunt the one he'd met long ago.
  Half a year he'd aged, pushing speed-of-light,
  And no one else on Earth did he know.

(interlude; arpeggio only for eight measures <half the stanza>  )
  But he and Radiant were soon parted.
  Their fellowship, though deep, had to end.
  On yet another trip, his ship is set to go,
  But first he hunted parks for a friend.