[Verse 1] You wear white cotton gloves Like a promise to the past Dust on your cuffs From the fifth row in the stacks You know every bent spine Every note tucked in the flap You say, "Some things survive If you hold them just like that" [Pre-Chorus] And I watch you Trace the labels with care Like a map under your fingertips Like you can get there [Chorus] The archivist The archivist You keep my name in a drawer The archivist The archivist You don’t let the edges tear (keep my name) (keep my name) You know what was here [Verse 2] You found my old report card Folded in a shoe box lid My brother’s postcard And the stamp that he never sent You laughed at my bad handwriting Said, "Look how hard you tried" Then you placed it back in order Like a ribcage on a line [Pre-Chorus] And I watch you Make the broken things whole With a date, a stamp, a silence And a place to go [Chorus] The archivist The archivist You keep my name in a drawer The archivist The archivist You don’t let the edges tear (keep my name) (keep my name) You know what was here [Bridge] Tell me what gets kept When the building shakes Tell me what you save When the lamp burns late If the boxes flood If the ink runs thin Would you still find me Where I’ve always been? [Final Chorus] The archivist The archivist You keep my name in a drawer The archivist The archivist You don’t let the edges tear The archivist The archivist You know what was here (keep my name) (keep my name) You know what was here
