Ghosts In The Crossfire

[Verse 1] Bootprints sink in the flooded field Names and numbers on rusted steel Smoke climbs up like a wordless prayer No one listening Just dead air [Chorus] We make ghosts in the crossfire Don’t know their faces Just call it “cost” Every mother Every child Folded into “acceptable loss” We write ledgers in their blood Then wash our hands in the rain But the dirt keeps the records And the ground remembers every name [Verse 2] Schoolyard swings in a twisted line Backpacks burst Spilling out their lives Chalk and crayons ground into the stone Tiny shoes No walking home [Chorus] We make ghosts in the crossfire Don’t know their faces Just call it “cost” Every mother Every child Folded into “acceptable loss” We write ledgers in their blood Then wash our hands in the rain But the dirt keeps the records And the ground remembers every name [Verse 3] Hospital beds in a broken ward Windows gone Hanging on a cord Nurses whisper Counting what they’ve saved Marking time By how long they’ve been afraid [Chorus] We make ghosts in the crossfire Don’t know their faces Just call it “cost” Every mother Every child Folded into “acceptable loss” We write ledgers in their blood Then wash our hands in the rain But the dirt keeps the records And the ground remembers every name [Verse 4] Old man kneels where his house once stood Sifts through splinters Ash And wood Finds a ribbon Finds a tangled braid Holds it close Like it can be unmade [Chorus] We make ghosts in the crossfire Don’t know their faces Just call it “cost” Every mother Every child Folded into “acceptable loss” We write ledgers in their blood Then wash our hands in the rain But the dirt keeps the records And the ground remembers every name [Bridge] Who gets statues Who gets streets Who gets silence Who gets grief Who gets medals Who gets dirt Who counts bodies Who counts hurt If there’s a heaven looking down Does it turn its eyes away Or does it scream through every mouth That never got to pray [Chorus] We make ghosts in the crossfire Don’t know their faces Just call it “cost” Every mother Every child Folded into “acceptable loss” We write ledgers in their blood Then wash our hands in the rain But the dirt keeps the records And the ground remembers every name