Laura Chandler - Burned Too Long

LAURA CHANDLER
Burned Too Long - Lyrics

LIGHTLY COLORED BLUE
(© laura chandler, lulu bucket music)

tucked in a shoebox are dances and letters
flowers i kept to remember our days
tucked in a shoebox are pictures and pages
lines on loose leaf i had written for you

once i wrote down all the times i had seen you
to count the time of the in between
to see how long i could go without you
with only picture and a shoebox

i looked in the shoebox at your picture today
the white’s turning yellow and the black’s turning gray
the lines on the page are old and they’re fading
and i colored your picture today

chorus:
i colored your picture, i colored your picture
i colored your picture a very light blue
i colored your picture, i colored your picture
light blue

tucked in a shoebox are aging expressions
of love we had thought would not fade away
what we once thought was a lasting impression
has turned into something tattered and grey

i looked in the shoebox at your picture today
the white’s turning yellow and the black’s turning grey
the dances are rusty and the flowers are musty
and i colored your picture today.

chorus
end

SLOW DOWN RAIN (© laura chandler/lulu bucket music)

she steps lightly avoiding the puddles
but clouds have followed her for years
she picks up her pace and tries not to leave a trace
of where she’s been
and under her breath she prays
under her breath she prays
under her breath she prays for the rain to slow down

chorus:
slow down rain
slow down rain
slow down rain
slow down rain

he was born in the streets, he was a street fighter
never one to cry, but there were clouds in his eyes
he liked to chase the dragon and every pretty girl he could find
now he’s chasing his dreams but he can’t run straight
he needs a methadone kick for his head
and it feels like I’m drowning he said
oh he said, he said

chorus

a man was married last year now that’s all he has left
he stayed out of the puddles he was dry in the streets
but the clouds are under his eyes
now he’s spending his time like it was his last dime
like there’s nothing to save it for
and he’s screaming, screaming for it to pour
but his mother is crying
his daughter is crying
his lover is crying for the rain to slow down

chorus

BURNED TOO LONG (© laura chandler, lulu bucket music)

i walk through the woods to a frozen field
sun sets blood orange, surreal
my coat is open to reveal
this barren land’s appeal
i stop to listen for a sign
frost glistens in the pine
and i could melt it with one kiss
my breath warming all of this

chorus:
i’ve burned too long

i lay down to await the moon
my mind wanders to an unclaimed room
where firelight dances in your hair
and i’m still burning there

chorus:
end

(chorus)
when i fell for you i fell hard
when i fell for you i fell hard

it’s not the kind of love you take for granted
it’s not the kind of love that fools around
it’s not the kind of love like when you’re younger
and you keep trippin’ over it

(chorus)

it’s not like it was my first time
i’ve been in love before
but i always wandered in another direction
looking for more

(chorus)

i don’t think about tomorrow
it will surely come to pass
i just know that when i’m with you
i want to make every moment last

(repeat first verse)

(chorus)

LULLABY (© laura chandler, lulu bucket music)

oh little girl, your father is not coming home
he just needs some time alone

my ma used to sing me to sleep at night
her hands rough from the waiting and wringing them tight
she’d tuck me in and we’d wish on a a star
her hair, toppling to kiss me still smelled of smoke from the bar

and here’s a lullaby for little girls who can’ sleep
when their fear becomes friendly, curls up at their feet
follows them to school and outside to play
sure it will come true one day

they forget how to love
and they don’t learn to grieve
sure, everyone will leave
and here’s a lullaby

(bridge)

here’s a lullaby
here’s a lullaby
here’s a lullaby
my ma used to sing.

WIDOW’S WATCH (© laura chandler, lulu bucket)

you haunt me like a dream
someone is drowning in
you taunt me like the wind
blowing me these lonely days
time comes in waves
measure in moments and days
age sits me down
showing her subtle ways

we used to sit by the water
sometimes we’d stay all day long
and watch as the ships sailed in
my love so handsome and strong

war came tensions grew
i watched him go that’s when i knew

chorus:
all that’s left is the waiting
rocking in this chair
my memory fading
turning in the air

sleep comes again
the promise of an old friend
dawn comes too soon
promising only noon

i’d like to sit by the water
i wold stay all day long
and wait for my ship to come
you would be there

chorus
end

we used to sit on your porch and play the mandolin
then we’d go to old weir’s pond and swim in nothing but our skin
we used to make love outside
underneath the sun and sky we had nothing to hide
now we go to work all day and think about the things we can’t afford
like kids and a car but we’ll get that vcr in case we get bored
i miss the way we used to talk and the way you hold my hand
when i reach for you at night feels like i’m crossing the rio grande

chorus:
i’m gonna find my way back to you

don’t get hasty baby don’t put the papers in the mail
don’t set the table just for one don’t put the china up for sale
i know you’re scared cause you keep looking away
turn back around won’t you listen to what i’m saying

chorus:

remember the winter when we were lost in that storm
no wood no heat no fuel to burn just our bodies to keep us warm
in the shadow of our fear and uncertain demise
we pledged a love i know’s not lost and i’ll keep on trying

chorus:
end

she sits alone in her room
carefully weaving her loom

she weaves love and hope
she weaves promise and betrayal
she weaves paths to follow
she weaves tears to swallow

the weaver at her loom
the weaver at her loom

weaving with a wooden comb
weaving finger flesh and bone
weaving death and breath and womb
the weaver at her loom

it takes a lot to weave a life
it takes a lot to weave a life
it takes a lot to weave a lifetime