Dauphin - A city of 8,200 in Manitoba, Canada, about 325 Km (202 miles) north of Winnipeg. I stopped there on my first cross-Canada road trip in 1969. This poem came from reminisces about that trip some 20 years later, and subsequently became a song.
Friendly people of Dauphin Town I remember your kindness well We drove five hundred miles that day To arrive before night fall A breeze was blowing off the lake In the West burned the Sun's funeral pyre The girl whose father owned the land Said travelers are all welcome here Use our wood to build a fire Quench your thirst from our spring Go for a swim in the morning You don't owe us a thing That night the north sky danced with lights Our amazement held us still A million stars faded as dawn arose To warm the clear morning chill Twenty years gone and now I live In the din of a big city street When I dream back to Dauphin Town The memory seems mighty sweet Use our wood to build a fire Quench your thirst from our spring Go for a swim in the morning You don't owe us a thing 1989
You can listen to my song Dauphin Town on YouTube by following this link: