The Gambler

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On a warm summer's evening, on a train bound for nowhere
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I met up with a gambler, we were both too tired to sleep,
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So we took turns a-staring at the window at the darkness,
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The boredom overtook us, and he began to speak.

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He said, "Son, I've made a life out of reading people's faces,
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Knowing what the cards were by the way they held their eyes.
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So if you don't mind my saying, I can see you're out of aces.
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For a taste of your whiskey, I'll give you some advice."

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So I handed him my bottle, and he drank down my last swallow.
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Then he bummed a cigarette, and asked me for a light.
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And the night got deathly quiet, and his face lost all expression.
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Said, "If you're gonna play the game, boy, you gotta learn to play it right."

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"You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em,

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Know when to walk away, know when to run
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You never count your money when you're sitting at the table,
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There'll be time enough for counting when the dealing's done."

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"Every gambler knows that the secret to surviving
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Is knowing what to throw away, knowing what to keep.
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'Cause every hand's a winner, and every hand's a loser,
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And the best that you can hope for is to die in your sleep."

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And when he finished speaking, he turned back toward the window,
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Crushed out his cigarette, faded off to sleep.
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And somewhere in the darkness, the gambler he broke even,
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But in his final words I found and ace that I could keep.