Born hard, born small and wirey Born tough, and tired, and unsmiling Born smart, and strong, and silent And hard, born hard Well her mama, she worked at the factory And her daddy, he lived at the bar And the nights he came home were the long ones And hard, born hard At the school she found few to be trusted She found little that was worth her while But she learned how to smoke and drink whiskey Hard, born hard She dropped out, senior year, 1970 And she took a job at the factory Worked right up to the day she had the baby Hard, born hard Well she loved her own little daughter With a passion that took her off guard So she set her jaw, clenched her fists, and taught her Hard, born hard Now her face is lined and leathery And her voice is heavy and scarred And every day on the way to the factory She spends a dollar on a lottery card