put your oxygen mask on
you first
you first
then help the children around you
strap in for a bumpy ride
this time
this time
the failure is mechanical
this is not an airplane
it's a metaphor
put your oxygen mask on
you first
you first
then help the children around you
nothing sacred but
some things are precious
hallelujah for that!
the map is not the terrain
memorize it and then burn it
the love in the sky does not have a name
everyone tries it
so easy to talk to
god so loved the world
gave us each other
hallelujah for that!
inconsolable wailing
uncontrollable quaking
grief can bring you down
beneath your dignity
under visible pressure
indivisible oceans
there's something universal
in the throes of grief
if you ever cry
if you cry
how some people cry
people cry
you already know
yeah you know how that open muscle throbs
some people try
people try
so hard not to cry
hard to cry
you see them choking
as they're holding back their sobs
then the inevitable truce
an eleventh hour pardon
when pain runs out of juice
that's when the juicy bits get hardened
take a moment to recoup
and take tally what you've lost
eat some chicken noodle soup
all the chocolate in the house
la pietà carved out of marble
quarried out of northern italy
carved by michelangelo
commissioned for some bishops mausoleum stone
mary mourning young as a maid
across her lap the broken christ displayed
the banner on her breast reads michelangelo did this
every artist has to ask how much do i invest
la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la
but drowning people don't cry for help
their lungs fill with water and their voice box needs air
there's neither a whimper nor terrified yelp
your thoughts as you're drowning are private as prayer
drowning people don't thrash about
their arms lock downward pushing oxygen up
their eyes might blink wildly they'll form o's with their mouths
as their limbs tread tireledly against the formless depths
drowning people they know what's going on
you've got a little time to think before your brain starts shutting down
your thoughts might race panicked or rest on some love
who doesn't know drowning as they watch from above
there's still time enough
to put your oxygen mask on
hallelujah for that!