PART OF IT ALL
Our grandfathers lost their hearing
under perma-grey skies of their own making
They never saw past feeding their sons and their daughters
A few generations transformed and conquered
a world that knew freedom for so many centuries
Industry breaks down, erodes just like rocks on the shore
Carry me home, dark water
Make me a part of it all
Fill me with child-like wonder
as you reclaim this wall we stand upon
There's ghosts in these ancient ruins (oos)
You can still smell the smoke from the hearth of the union
Just like their coal and steel
they melt into the sea
Could they have foreseen the end of production,
where the great rivers force their redemption,
and the bright sun comes back home to turn everything green?
How did we ever confuse
the disguise we imposed on our world for control?
We're at the mercy of
the wind and water and stars
Now it's absurd and silly
to think: I believed I owned my own body
As if one day I won’t waste away into the sea
LOST BOY
Is it only me who feels it in the room
Am I the only one
“Is there any other like me?”
Said the lost boy to himself, in the dark
Everyone is so delightful
Why do you turn me away from your hearts?
How does everybody act like
This is what they had in mind
And it’ll all be fine
Drunk enough to understand
But too sober to judge impartially
Who their friends might be
I’m inviting you in
If it’s cold as it seems
Take my coat, take my dreams
I will share this moment with you
Look me straight in the eye
So that I can no longer deny
I am seen
NO ONE CAME
Are there enough melodies for you?
It’s hard for any one bird to shine through
Maybe if it’s two and not the same
More than one and one bird could sing
I’ll leave another card for you
Anytime you feel like a sigh
You can hold a bloody heart or two
Instead of bleeding from your eyes
No one came
No one came, no one dared to say
I’m hurting and I long for the comfort of two fool birds
No one came
Though they say, not the tune they play
It’s really just the wrong time and day
No one came
Remember what it was before
Hapless and alone on the floor
We had a fortune at our feet, uncovered when we finally did meet
What kind of loyalty is this? No charity or pity we seek
We have a million words to say before the payoff of the day
Before we try again and waste it (like our time)
Let’s find a hideaway cause
TIME AWAY
You can always take your time away
I could never save your kind of way
So I'll move slow
I'll take my time, if it don't feel right I'll change my direction
And you'll move fast
You're flying by, leaving all us normal folks behind
I don't know what to say
You're kind to me
Though you know I deserve
Your cruelty
People always see past what's right in their home
[Translation of poem by Ibn Arabi (1165-1240)]:
My heart has become capable of every form: it is a pasture for gazelles and a convent for Christian monks,
And a temple for idols and the pilgrim's Ka'bah
and the tables of the Torah and the book of the Qur'an.
I follow the religion of Love: whatever way Love's camels take, that is my religion and my faith.
ALL THAT WE HAVE
It's okay
you can say that you are really laughing at me
I don't take myself that seriously
If it means I get to hear the sound it works for me
Are you comfortable with where we are again
there are no obligations here
But I have to say that I don't feel too bad
do you?
Can we delight in the moment?
All that we have to be sure
You don't have to be more than just my muse
unless you want to be
Either way, I'll be glad for what it is
and what it's been
DANGEROUS CREATURES
Are my thoughts the same as my words would say
Can I feel for the other guys
Are these things I do for some kind of great review
Am I playing another guy
It's too late to say, but I'll say that
people are dangerous creatures
It should be clear by now
They don't change, they just wait for
someone to come bail them out of the cell they were born in
In the upstairs room I was hurting too
I saw a face I'd seen before
but somehow more
I left you alone in the dark with your head in your hands
My heart in the sand
For what, I can't really say, but anyway
VOICE OF MATURE JENNY
My hands are never really steady
But they dance
And patiently compose a brand new love song
Every morning, to the world at my command
They’re strong enough by now to keep the music flowing
For one more generation
Till I pass along these secrets I am holding
In my hands
They falter as they shake from time to time
For this I’ll do my best to grant forgiveness
Just as far as I can stretch this heart of mine
If my hands should ever idle
May my body fill the sky
And after I have gone
I hope you’ll celebrate this world
With me in mind
I’m proud to say I’ve done my work with care
And tried to choose a beautiful direction
For whatever little push I’ve been allotted
In this universe affair
ELLA FLIES
First morning light and I’ll be dragging you outside
You said today could be the day I’d finally fly by myself
and though I haven’t slept a wink
I’ve never been more wide awake
The sun has chased the moon away
and left a golden halo over Indiana cloudes
Cumulus friends, no threat of rain
This will be the perfect day
AMANDA:
If you must fly, have a marvelous time
Keep both your hands on the reins
I may not understand
This is your thing, little one
You are loved every day
ELLA:
I may be small, but I know where I want to go
I can be brave enough to chase the golden eagles
Diving over soy fields
Puzzled cows and farmers down below
My father taught me everything
I’ve watched him do it all a thousand times
Steering, landing, choosing the right aperture
And if I feel afraid
I’ll sing my mother’s song
JON:
Riding the thermals,
Ella’s got the eye
Earthy and sky, her mother and father
but the wind is her lullabye
ELLA:
The gap between the sun and the horizon’s getting narrow
So it’s time to ease her down
My folks are waiting breathless on the ground