On the warm summers evenin
On the train for Appaloosa
I met up with a pony

Drinkin' scotch and rye
He wasn't much for talkin'
So I left him to his whiskey

And as I turned to go to bed
He looked me in the eye


His mane had once been golden
But now was streaked with silver
His coat, once red as ruby

Was faded now to rust
His mark was a green apple
And his face, it was freckled

There was just something about him
That radiated trust.


He said "I reckon that you're lonely
And seekin' conversation
But though it ain't my habit

I could use some talkin' too
You're young and you're naive
In the hard ways of the world

I can see it in your eyes colt
I was once like you."


"You gotta know when to grow 'em
Know when to buck 'em
Know when they need some rain

When they need the sun
You don't count your harvest
While the fruit just ain't ripe yet

They'll be time enough for parties
When the season's done"


At first I thought,
He was talking bout' growing apples
The ramblings of a pony

In his elder years
But as his words came to me
I realized his message

And in his eyes of emerald
I thought I saw his tears


What he tried to tell me
Was a valuable life lesson
Things he'd learned the hard way

He was passing on to me
The joy and pains of life
The wisdom of the ages

I said "I hear what it is you're saying
The next round wi'll be on me."


"You gotta know when to grow 'em
Know when to buck 'em
Know when they need some rain

When they need the sun
You don't count your harvest
While the fruit just ain't ripe yet

They'll be time enough for parties
When the season's done"


"You gotta know when to grow 'em (when to grow em)
Know when to buck 'em (when to buck em)
Know when they need some rain

When they need the sun
You don't count your harvest
While the fruit just ain't ripe yet

They'll be time enough for parties
When the season's done"


"You gotta know when to grow 'em
Know when to buck 'em
Know when they need some rain

When they need the sun
You don't count your harvest
While the fruit just ain't ripe yet
They'll be time enough for parties
When the season's done"