Adelaide from For Now by Ben Griffin

Thumb prick and a drop of blood in the earth
Wing twitch and a crack of the shell
And I don’t know what got into Adelaide
But I’m shivering in the back of her car

Thumb prick and I drop your outreached hand
Don’t itch away all of your hope
And all of her sons are castaways
But I’m living just to see how far they go

I’ve been waiting on a sign
Posted upon your forehead and mine
Patient wanderer
Don’t look over yonder
The view here’s serene
Paint it green

I’ve been waiting at a light
Rolling an inch or two at a time
Requesting permission
Lost in transmission
The moth to a flame
As winter fades

Don’t sit with your grief on your arms and back
Just sit on the trunk with me
And I don’t know what got into Adelaide
Little girl what a mess you’ve made

Oooh Interlude

I’ve been wasting all my time
Drawing a map from your house to mine
Chasing pavement
But the dust in the basement
Cheats my lungs
Roll off of my tongue

I’ve been wasting on a vine
Plucking the strings of backyard light
Sour and sunburned
Houses crumbling to the earth
And the sea
Rolling off on a breeze

• Folk
• Portland