Track Insight / Lyrics
They gave me a flag in the gray morning light
They said keep it folded till the end of the night
It rests in my locker by the flour and salt
Like a soldier too tired to answer when called
I never unfold it, though the years pull me wide
I trace every crease where your name used to hide
The cloth stays in triangles, the goodbye stays asleep
I keep you folded in the words that I weep
I never unfold it when the morning burns gold
Your stripes by the window, a story left cold
The coffee gets bitter, but the sugar stays sweet
And the flag keeps your silence folded neat
By noon I have orders and the griddle aflame
Your colors stay quiet while I whisper your name
A trucker asks why it never flies outside
I say some goodbyes are tied up inside
I never unfold it, though the years pull me wide
I trace every crease where your name used to hide
The diner keeps turning, but I never move on
I grind the same beans till the midnight is gone
I never unfold it when the evening turns red
The stars shine in neon through the rain on the glass
A regular taps it, says it weighs more than cloth
The whole empty booth says this silence will last
The busboy drops silver and the cook burns the toast
Your folded blue corner pokes out of my coat
I carry you home through the grease and the rain
Then tuck you beside me where old photographs remain
I never unfold it, though the seasons now change
I mend every edge from the lonesome exchange
The flag marks the distance I never could cross
I wear your last silence beneath all my loss
I never unfold it when the streetlights glow gold
A small patch of blue in the grease and the cold
The jukebox keeps running from midnight to dawn
I stare at the doorway, but you are gone
For years I kept asking how a hello can die
Between clattering plates and a customer's sigh
Then dawn through the blinds made the kitchen shine white
I touched one soft corner and opened the light
I spread you at sunrise on the counter's white tile
Your colors lie peaceful by the coffee and oil
The old woman downstairs saw the morning shine through
I knew that release could be brave and still blue
I can unfold you now, let the morning shine bright
Your stripes cross the table in the first kitchen light
The old woman downstairs says the colors look new
And I finally know what I'm fighting for you
By closing, the air holds a warm buttered shine
The booths are still counting every cup in the line
Your folded years soften inside of my chest
No grave in the paper, just a road west
I can fly over you now, let the daylight take flight
Your colors are dancing in the blue morning light
The old woman downstairs holds the door as I go
And the flag finally opens where the restless winds blow
I fold you with honor, not to close you away
Your edges are steady in the light of the day
I keep the hard crease, but the colors stay bright
The flag rests in sunlight, unfolded tonight
