Track 3 of the EP The Bell Still Rings on Her Handlebars · 2023

The Speech I Folded Into Quarters

“The speech folded into quarters and tucked in my sleeve again. Hope, hushed, with a very careful piano.”

art song · art song · chamber song · 4:20

Lyrics

I folded the speech into quarters
And tucked it inside my sleeve
The words went soft from my fingers
Like something I half believe
The hall is a hush of faces
The microphone hums and waits
I breathe in the smell of old curtains
And walk through the open gates

Say it plain, say it slow
Thank the ones who helped me grow
Say it plain, say it true
Every window I walked through
Paper trembles in my hand
But my voice knows where to stand
Say it plain, say it slow
Now the morning lets me go

The teacher who stayed past the bell rang
The friend who would share her bread
The mother who waited at midnight
With tea and the things unsaid
I unfold the creases like mountains
And find that I know it by heart
The page was a place to begin from
Not a place to stay apart

Say it plain, say it slow
Thank the ones who helped me grow
Say it plain, say it true
Every window I walked through
Paper trembles in my hand
But my voice knows where to stand
Say it plain, say it slow
Now the morning lets me go

Quarters, then halves, then whole
A letter becomes a soul
I look up from the page
And step onto the stage

Say it plain, say it slow
Thank the ones who helped me grow
Say it plain, say it true
Every window I walked through
Paper trembles in my hand
But my voice knows where to stand
Say it plain, say it slow
Now the morning lets me go

Now the morning lets me go