The Momma 'n' Daddy Collection 69

I didn't yet feature the Stanley Brothers. That won't do. Here's one from them that slap bang belongs: the two parental figures - check; God - check; home and leaving home, travelling the land - check times three; returning (but too late) - check. It's 'The Fields Have Turned Brown', lyrics by Carter Stanley, and sung here by Ralph Stanley:

I left my old home to ramble this country
My mother and dad said son don't go wrong
Remember that God will always watch o'er you
And we will be waiting for you here at home

Chorus
Son don't go astray was what they both told me
Remember that love for God can be found
But now they're both gone this letter just told me
Four years they've been dead, the fields have turned brown

For many long years I travelled this country
No thoughts of the day when I would return
Now as I go home and find no one waiting
The price I have paid to live and to learn

Repeat chorus

The fields turning brown is an instance of the pathetic fallacy, but none the worse for that. 'Don't go astray' might be considered the key theme.

[The Momma 'n' Daddy Archive, containing all the details of the series, is here.]