Sage Francis – Thank You lyrics

You gave me language as a gift, I turned it against you
I was stupid, I was young, I was hanged by my Judas tongue
You shouldn’t give weapons to kids that don’t know better
I can't possibly understand that there’s no such thing as forever
For every letter in the alphabet
You said connect ‘em to a happy word, no matter how bad things get
I did my best, but the pickings got slim
Once I arrived at “X” and I had to think of synonyms
Weight ‘em against the antonyms, I was hanging with all the mannequins
Who are on a constant search for a person’s amputated limbs
Almost offered up my own, trading in my arms and legs
You said learn to express yourself if you’re gonna stand for things
I stood up with that expression, stood up against everything including you
I was stupid, I was adolescent, but I had your lessons to cling on to
And I want you to know how much it helped
Considering everything that I’d gone through
It was a period without periods, run on sentences were like binges
I was a comma with no cause, a rebel with no clause
Anxiety is no excuse once there’s nothing left to separate
We could have connected, but didn’t
I was ignorant, passed out on the spacebar
The further we drifted apart the closer
I came to realizing just how amazing you are
Now that you’re gone I'mma say it to the stars
‘Till my words knock worlds off their axes and the universe collapses

Thank you for the matches, for the gift of fire
For the wood and the axe, for whooping my ass
For the wheel even if you didn’t invent it
For the impact that you had on me, it’s epic, thank you for the effort
For teaching me the ABC’s even if I never make my way to “Z”
Even if I never do for someone else exactly what you did for me
Thank you

I was a stupid son of a gun with initials carved into me
I was a stray, a runaway, afraid someday you’d shoot me
So I scratched off the letters with a pocket knife
It’s how I loss my way when I was tossed into the fray
This is not my life, who am I kidding, it's a thank you note
Disguised as a written apology for everything you taught to me
So awkwardly I approach the open microphone with everything that I wrote
Clear my throat, adjust the collar on my coat
As I rock crowds, microphones and boats and then I stroke
Whatever little ego I have left, I should have left it at the alter
But I didn’t cause I’m an idiot, self-deprecating author
With a paperback edition that isn’t worth a flip through
If I don’t give you the credit that you deserve
You edited the words from the grave and beyond
From the first sign of sun raise at dawn
Till the moonbeam set blaze to my lawn
The universe collapses on my front steps
So we get to share in that moment, for just one moment
And nobody’s upset, there’s no more anger, there’s no more sunsets
So I crawl back in the chamber, you can shoot me up
You might as well, we had great communication before the tower fell

Thank you for the matches, for the gift of fire
For the wood and the axe, for whooping my ass
For the wheel even if you didn’t invent it
For the impact that you had on me, it’s epic, thank you for the effort
For teaching me the ABC’s even if I never make my way to “Z”
Even if I never do for someone else exactly what you did for me
Thank you

I'mma do my best, while you rest in peace