Odes to Joy

Tarot · Track 43 · middle

Eight of Cups

RWS: a figure with a staff walking away over rough ground toward mountains, eight cups stacked behind him with one clear gap in the row, a moon eclipsing the sun overhead. Keywords: walking away, leaving what is fine but finished, the honest departure nobody asked for.

No audio yet — generation pending.

Lyrics

[Intro]
Mm.

[Verse 1]
I washed the glasses and I lined them up
Five on the bottom, three on the top
They catch the streetlight from the avenue
A heavy silver on the rim of the cup
There isn’t anything broken to fix
No shattered porcelain, no bitter tricks
But there is a gap where the ninth should be
And my eye goes right to the empty space, you see

[Chorus]
It’s a hard thing, walking away from a full table
Leaving the warmth when the fire is still lit
But the moon is sliding right over the sun
And this beautiful coat just doesn’t fit
I’m taking my walking stick out to the rocks
I’m leaving the water drawn, turning the locks
It’s fine, it’s fine, it’s fine.
But it’s finished.

[Verse 2]
I didn't pack much, just a bag for the cold
Left the blue kettle we bought second-hand
It’s harder to go when nobody is yelling
When nobody’s drawing a line in the sand
The terrain out the window is jagged and steep
While the whole of the neighborhood turns in its sleep
I’m not looking back at the gold in the glass
I’m choosing the gravel, the mud and the grass

[Chorus]
It’s a hard thing, walking away from a full table
Leaving the warmth when the fire is still lit
But the moon is sliding right over the sun
And this beautiful coat just doesn’t fit
I’m taking my walking stick out to the rocks
I’m leaving the water drawn, turning the locks
It’s fine, it’s fine, it’s fine.
But it’s finished.

[Bridge]
The mind is a trap, it demands a complete design
It can’t just rejoice in the eight that are perfectly fine
It stares at the hole in the stacking, the missing degree
And tells me the mountain is exactly where I ought to be
The ground is uneven, the air is so thin
But I had to get out of the room I was in

[Outro]
Five on the bottom. Three on the top.
I left the porch light on.
I don’t know what I'm walking toward
Just know that the thirst is gone.
Just know that it's finished.
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