Track 3 of the EP Left Open, Left Running · 2026
Mr. Okonkwo Left the Window Open
“I remember Mr. Okonkwo, who left the window open on the coldest days because he said children need air. I never forgot him.”
acoustic · school-days folk · tender acoustic · 4:12
Lyrics
Back row, third desk down, the radiator knocked Chalk dust on the sill where the morning light was caught I was the quiet one who never raised a hand You looked right at me like you could understand You said the best of reading is the wondering Not the answer in the back, but the door left swinging You handed me a book with the corner turned And said, take your time, there is nothing to be earned Mr. Okonkwo left the window open Let the whole wide weather in I did not know I was a person worth believing Till you said, go on, begin Thirty years of Septembers, and I still can hear That kind voice saying, you are welcome here Mr. Okonkwo left the window open And I walked right through Now I teach a small class on a Tuesday night A girl in the back row, tucked away from the light I turn a page corner and I pass it down And I say, take your time, there is no hurry now I never wrote to thank you, never found the words Just a name on a register, a coat on a hook But every patient question that I ask out loud Is something that you gave me in a worn old book Mr. Okonkwo left the window open Let the whole wide weather in I did not know I was a person worth believing Till you said, go on, begin Thirty years of Septembers, and I still can hear That kind voice saying, you are welcome here Mr. Okonkwo left the window open And now I hold it wide Take your time, take your time There is room enough for you Take your time, take your time The window's open, love, walk through