Dying Fires
Whiskey Tales: Unveiling Hidden Stories in 'Dying Fires'
Lyrics
We told old stories with the details rearranged
We shared tales, altering the details.
Cover up those bad tattoos but the old ink still remains
Covering up regrettable tattoos, but the past remains visible.
High roads and muddy trails that'll lead you back around
Navigating both high roads and muddy trails that eventually circle back.
Short cuts and dead ends for the mole in the stony ground
Seeking shortcuts but encountering dead ends in the stony ground.
Up on the hill beneath the green grass and the grave stones
At a hill, observing the graves beneath green grass, where only skeletal remains endure.
Nothing left of flesh and blood but the alabaster bones
Physical existence reduced to alabaster bones, devoid of flesh and blood.
Oh, the things you never say leave you
Unspoken thoughts and feelings linger, shaping one's experiences.
Whiskey drunk and spinning screaming salt into the waves
Intoxicated with whiskey, expressing emotions violently, akin to throwing salt into the waves.
These are the things you can only learn by watching fires die in the early dawn
Profound lessons learned only through witnessing the end of fires in the early dawn.
Scribbled calculations to account for the missing parts
Recording calculations to make sense of what is missing or lost.
It's hard to know what you're dealing with when you can't see both eyes of the jack of hearts
Difficulty understanding a situation without seeing all perspectives.
And you know that the darker side of things is probably about same as the one you see
Acknowledging the darkness in life, realizing it may not differ much from what is visible.
But every now and then that's ok, I too have a little wilderness
Embracing the occasional acceptance of the wild and untamed aspects of life.
These are the things you can only learn by watching fires die in the early dawn
Reiterating the significance of learning from dying fires in the early dawn.
Went to bed a wolf and woke up shivering in fleece pajamas
Transforming from a wild state to a more domesticated, vulnerable one.
As a clean white snow turned back to a dirty rain
A metaphorical shift from pristine snow to tainted rain, reflecting change.
Spent the last of the night on the screened-in porch
Spending the last part of the night on a porch, observing nature's chaotic symphony.
And watched those trees rattle back and forth
Watching trees sway, resembling an ink blot Rorschach, as dawn approaches.
In an ink blot Rorschach symmetry just smudged on the coming dawn
Perceiving a blurred and ambiguous dawn with patterns akin to a Rorschach test.
And I left
Departure.
Apex eyes from the side of the road and the day old coffee crawling down your throat
Observing distant eyes on the roadside and the lingering effects of day-old coffee.
Sky up above getting heavy with things that want to feed on you
Noticing an ominous sky, laden with entities desiring to consume one's essence.
Left arm the color of a wheat-back cent if I had nickels for the minutes I've spent
Describing the left arm's color and hinting at the passage of time.
Driving all day trying to trade old quarters for shiny shiny dimes
Enduring a journey, attempting to exchange old experiences for new ones.
Fish belly clouds and electric light I don't think I'm going to make it home tonight
Observing ominous clouds and electric light, expressing doubt about returning home.
Lost in the worn out crease of a folded map on fire
Feeling lost in a chaotic and burning representation of life, akin to a folded map on fire.
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