Paraiso (Paradise)

Dedicated to all pinoys out there..

Return to a land called Paraiso
A place where a dying river ends
No birds dare fly over Paraiso
No space allows them to endure
The smoke that screens the air
The grass that's never there

Refrain 1:
And if I could see a single bird
What a joy!
I try to write some words and create
A simple song to be heard by the rest of the
world

I live in a land called Paraiso
In a house made of cardboard floors and walls
I learned to be free in Paraiso
Free to claim anything I see
Matching rags for my clothes
Plastic bags for the colds

Refrain 2:
And if empty cans were all I have
What a joy!
I never fight to take someone else's coins
and live with fear like the rest of the boys

Chorus:
Paraiso, help me make a stand
Paraiso, take me by the hand
Paraiso, make the world understand
That if I could see a single bird
What a joy!
This tired and hungry land could expect
Some truth and hope and respect
From the rest of the world

Repeat Refrain 2
Repeat Chorus

ano okey ba?

Paraiso was composed by Ryan Cayabyab in 1992(I guess) for the group "Smokey Mountain" - named after what used to be a garbage dump in Tondo.