Headlight on the coastal road
Fare-count blinking in the cold
I know that tower by the sea
Its last light is calling me
Meter hums, the wipers swipe
Salt ticks dots across the glass
Dead batteries and paper tips
Every cold fare passes fast
Harbor cranes cut through the mist
Brass horns bark beside the pier
I brake beside the rusted rail
Where salt has stained the lighthouse seal
The last light is going out
Every fare takes me near
No hand wave can slow the fear
I keep the meter counting down
While the tower fades from town
The last light is going out
Old Tom said the sea gets paid
For every shortcut that it knows
So I drove his worn-out sedan
Toward that blinking western span
Wiper blades are running dry
A gull taps twice upon the roof
I feel the filament give way
Like one loose thread inside my coat
The last light is going out
Every fare takes me near
No hand wave can slow the fear
I keep the meter counting down
While the tower fades from town
The last light is going out
Silence where the signal sat
Cold glass trembling in my hand
I turn the key, but that's not that
A dead bulb cannot understand
One red taxi, empty back
Dawn is pressing on the shore
I leave my fare beside the track
And turn my wheel toward the door
The last light is going out
Every mile lets go of fear
No hand wave can turn the route
I keep the slow clock counting sound
While the black water rolls around
The last light is going out
Headlight fading down the road
Fare-count resting, engine still
The tower keeps its empty code
I keep the power of my will
