I lived in Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria when I was a young mum bringing up four children. At that time a friend put some university students in touch with us. The students were making a study of local families and how the presence of Sellafield nuclear power station further up the coast affected their lives, which prompted me (probably that very day) to write this song.
Take Me to the BeachWill you take me down to the beach?
I've seen the sand, bright in the sun,
I've seen the water, calling me to play.
Please, mother, take me to the beach.
Please, mother take me to the beach.
Oh no, child, don't ask me
to take you on the sand
for there's danger hidden there that we can't see.
Your buckets and your spades
must all be put away
or there'll be no peace of mind for me,
or there'll be no peace of mind for me.
Can I paddle in the water then,
and play with the rolling waves?
Can I look for jelly-fish and eels?
Can I float in the cool water,
Can I swim out to that rock,
where I will sit, pretending I'm a seal?
Where I will sit, pretending I'm a seal.
Oh no, child, don't ask me
to let you in the water
for there's danger hidden there that we can't see.
Your swimming trunks and rubber rings
must all be put away
or there'll be no peace of mind for me,
or there'll be no peace of mind for me.
But mother there's no danger in the water,
Mother there's no danger in the sand.
The sand will be smooth and firm beneath my feet
and I won't swim too far from the land,
and I won't swim too far from the land.
Oh I know you see no danger
in the sea and in the sand.
I know you have no fears like me,
but further up coast there's a big wide pipe
spilling radioactive waste into the sea,
spilling radioactive waste into the sea.
And it's haunting all the birds,
and it's haunting all the fishes,
and it's haunting all the places it can reach.
And although my greatest wish
is for your freedom to play,
that's why I cannot take you to the beach,
that's why I cannot take you to the beach.
©2003 Rahel Guzelian
