A Stone

Hot breath, rough skin Warm laughs and smiling The loveliest words whispered and meant You like all these things But, though you like all these things You love a stone You love a stone Because it's smooth And it's cold And you'd love most to be told That it's all your own You love white veins, you love hard grey The heaviest weight, the clumsiest shape The earthiest smell, the hollowest tone You love a stone And I'm found too fast, called too fond of flames And then I'm phoning my friends And then I'm shouldering the blame While you're picking pebbles out of the drain, miles ago You're out singing songs, and I'm down shouting names At the flickerless screen, going fucking insane Am I losing my cool, overstating my case? Well, baby, what can I say? You know I never claimed that I was a stone And you love a stone You love white veins, you love hard grey The heaviest weight, the clumsiest shape The earthiest smell, the hollowest tone You love a stone You love a stone, because it's dark, and it's old And if it could start being alive, you'd stop living alone And I think I believe that, if stones could dream They'd dream of being laid side-by-side, piece-by-piece And turned into a castle for some towering queen They're unable to know And when that queen's daughter came of age But I think she'd be lovely and stubborn and brave And suitors would journey from kingdoms away Just to make themselves known And I think that I know the bitter dismay Of a lover who brought fresh bouquets every day When she turned him away to remember some knave Who once gave just one rose, one day, years ago --- A Stone - Okkervil River