Odes to Joy

Tarot · Track 27 · middle

Six of Wands

RWS: a rider crowned with laurel on a white horse, a laurel wreath tied to his wand, a crowd walking alongside him. Keywords: public victory, acclaim, the parade, pride and its very short shelf life.

No audio yet — generation pending.

Lyrics

I haven’t touched the pavement since we left the hall
The air is thick with clapping, I am ten feet tall
Someone took a strip of green foil from the floral stand
And tied it to my black umbrella like a magic wand
And I am leading the procession down the center line
Tonight the traffic has to wait, I’ve got the drive
I take the compliment, I let the chorus swell
I wear the glory like a custom-fitted shell

Oh, the parade is walking with me
I’ve got the makeshift laurel on my head
They’re shouting out my name into the streetlights
Hanging onto every stupid word I said
I’m riding on a white horse made of adrenaline and pride
With all my favorite people walking by my side
It’s a beautiful noise
It’s a hell of a ride

My brain is bathing in the chemical reward
A sudden flush of dopamine against the dark
We're six abreast across the crosswalk, walking loud
I've never felt so anchored to this heavy town
I raise my foil-wrapped umbrella to the sky
You gotta hold the trophy up while it’s still bright
Before the metal tarnishes and starts to rust
Before the magic settles back into the dust

'Cause the parade is walking with me
I’ve got the makeshift laurel on my head
They’re shouting out my name into the streetlights
Hanging onto every stupid word I said
I’m riding on a white horse made of adrenaline and pride
With all my favorite people walking by my side
It’s a beautiful noise
It’s a hell of a ride

But we reach the concrete stairs at 43rd and Main
And everyone remembers they have an early day
The handshakes loosen and the voices start to thin
The winter air finally gets underneath my skin
I watch them turn the corner, swiping through the gate
The white horse vanishes beneath the city's weight

But the parade was walking with me!
I had the makeshift laurel on my head!
They were shouting out my name into the streetlights
Hanging onto every stupid word I said
I was riding on a white horse made of adrenaline and pride
With all my favorite people walking by my side
It was a beautiful noise
While it was alive

Just me and an umbrella on the avenue
The green foil slipping down the handle, torn in two
The silence rings a little louder than the cheers
I think I'll keep this plastic ribbon for a couple of years
Or maybe just until tomorrow.
A hell of a ride.
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