When Trouble Came

Otis Rush: So Many Roads (So Many Trains to Ride)

DOWNWIND FROM THE BLOODHOUNDS

I to my perils
Of cheat and charmer
Came clad in armor
By stars benign.
Hope lies to mortals
And most believe her,
But man's deceiver
Was never mine.

The thoughts of others
Were light and fleeting,
Of lovers' meeting
Or luck or fame.
Mine were of trouble,
And mine were steady;
So I was ready
When trouble came.

--A.E. Housman