Animal.

for the last three years
i am up at dawn
outside my boots hit frozen country ground
and i’m raising your flag
i am seeing my breath

it took me some time
to get your stars and stripes just right
and i pledge, right hand up to nothin’
nothin’ at all

i put you in a plane that went down
i put you in a car and you died
i put you doing drugs and laughing at your high

for the last three years, i’m deprived.

you’re the only thing no one can joke about
you’re the only thing that’s ever really happened
you are where i learned to draw all the lines
the price we all paid for figuring that out
it’s animal, it’s beyond

i put you in a fire out west
i put you in the ocean to sink
i put you in a murder with someone easier to blame

for the last three years of my life.

i love to carry you around
but the weight keeps getting lighter
the pain is turning into sentiment
all this sweetness is just distance

i put you in a dream to say hi
i put you down pages all the time
and i have to believe you weren’t thinkin’ of me

so for three more years i’ll survive.