The coffee's gone cold again
The dawn is coming in
A folded flag beside me
Still holding its corners in
The bacon grease is glowing
The onions start to weep
I wipe the counter slowly
While hungry customers creep
A folded flag is sleeping
Inside the kitchen steam
I never took the corners (7)
Where all the broad stripes run (7)
I only counted orders (7)
Before the last bell rung (6)
The flag stayed tight in sections (7)
Like all the words I knew (7)
And I kept it close and folded (8)
The whole night through (4)
The short-order regular
Sets sugar beside his tea
He jokes about my shoulder
The one he cannot see
The flag is in the locker
Where greasy aprons fold
I never took the corners (7)
Where all the broad stripes run (7)
I only counted orders (7)
Before the last bell rung (6)
The flag stayed tight in sections (7)
Like all the words I knew (7)
And I kept it close and folded (8)
The whole night through (4)
By six the griddle's cooling
The busboy stacks the plates
I scrub the grease from failing
And rub my tired eyes away
Then all the stainless steel
Feels lighter than before
I stand beneath the doorway
Where smoke and sunlight meet
The cloth is still folded
But my hands have found their feet
I touch the wooden corner
The one I wouldn't move
And hear my grandpa laughing
Across the dining room
The first sun hits the window
The coffee starts to gleam
I lift the flag in silence
And pull the creases straight
The broad stripes catch the hallway
The white stars lift from blue
I took the corners gently (7)
Where all the broad stripes run (7)
I read the names in order (7)
And named each shining sun (7)
The cloth unfolds in sections (7)
The way I always knew (7)
And I lay it in the sunlight (8)
The whole night through (4)
The hash browns are finished
The table mats run clear
I wash the pans in silver
And wipe another tear
The folded flag is open
The dawn is shining too
I took the corners gently (7)
Where all the broad stripes run (7)
I read the names in order (7)
And named each shining sun (7)
The cloth unfolds in sections (7)
Like all the words I knew (7)
And I lay it in the sunlight (8)
The whole night through (4)
I carry every person
Who carried me
I set the flag in sunlight
And I am free
The coffee's warm again
The morning comes in
A folded flag is open
And I let it begin
