When I Was a Boy

I won't forget when Peter Pan came to my house, took my hand I said I was a boy I'm glad he didn't check I learned to fly, I learned to fight I lived a whole life in one night We saved each other's lives out on the pirate's deck And I remember that night When I'm leaving a late night with some friends And I hear somebody tell me it's not safe, someone should help me I need to find a nice man to walk me home When I was a boy, I scared the pants off of my mom Climbed what I could climb upon And I don't know how I survived I guess I knew the tricks that all boys knew And you can walk me home, but I was a boy, too I was a kid that you would like, just a small boy on her bike Riding topless, yeah, I never cared who saw My neighbor came outside to say, "get your shirt" I said "no way, it's the last time I'm not breaking any law" And now I'm in a clothing store, and the sign says less is more More that's tight means more to see, more for them, not more for me That can't help me climb a tree in ten seconds flat When I was a boy, see that picture? that was me Grass-stained shirt and dusty knees And I know things have gotta change They got pills to sell, they've got implants to put in, they've got implants to remove But I am not forgetting That I was a boy, too And like the woods where I would creep, it's a secret I can keep Except when I'm tired, except when I'm being caught off guard I've had a lonesome awful day, the conversation finds its way To catching fire-flies out in the backyard And I tell the man I'm with about the other life I lived And I say now you're top gun I have lost and you have won He says, "oh no, no, can't you see?" When I was a girl, my mom and I, we always talked And I picked flowers everywhere that I walked And I could always cry, now even when I'm alone I seldom do And I have lost some kindness But I was a girl, too And you were just like me, and I was just like you