The hill starts breathing before the dark is done A long cry lifts out of the trees I hear it asking if a voice can stay Or if the night already owns the key I do not back away from a sound that old I open my throat and I give it a name If the pipes came here to take the air They will have to take it from me I was not made to whisper I was not made to hide If the mountain wants a fight I can climb Pipes against the sky I will meet that cry If the night can howl Then so can I Pipes against the sky Do not look away I was built for weather I was built to stay Every note they throw is a dare in the fog A blade of air cutting the cold I send one back twice as high And I hold it till the dark takes hold This is not a hymn and it is not a joke This is a voice refusing to kneel If they came to claim the top of the night They found a throat that does not yield I can go higher I can go longer I can break and still come back stronger You can own the hill You can own the wind You cannot own the sound I send Throw the cry I throw it back Cut the dark I cut it back If this is a war of breath and bone Then I was never going home Let the organ hold the floor Let the pipes take the door I will stand in the break of the note And give the night one more Pipes against the sky I will meet that cry If the night can howl Then so can I Pipes against the sky Do not look away I was built for weather I was built to stay Pipes against the sky
