Circle of Bone

[Verse 1] Back woods death priest ashes on his teeth Got a crown made of bottle caps mud on his feet Little tin cross hangin off a nail string Mumbling a sermon only coyotes sing Circle of bone like a chalk line wider Every skull staring like a busted lighter He dance slow-motion ankles in the pine straw Every step scrape like it trippin on a dry jaw Smoke from a stump fire curl in my lung Hear him speak scripture in a language of tongues I ain’t blink once while the shadows get long Whole forest lean in just to hum along [Chorus] Back woods death priest in a circle of bone Possum under my shed chewin seeds from the throne I’m sittin on the porch while the zen koans drone Let the whole dark world be a bell in my dome Back woods death priest in a circle of bone Possum got the crumbs like a dog of his own I’m laughin at the riddle while it cuts to the bone Am I watchin all this or is this my home? [Verse 2] Possum under that lean tin eyes like marbles in a coffee can Tongue on the feeder tray slick as a snake Every sunflower shell like a vow it break He don’t say grace just scrape that plate Tail draw question marks in the red clay gate He a temple rat of the backyard shrine Little monk of the trash on a midnight grind I sip cold coffee bugs in the rim Whole sky buzzin ‘round the hole I’m in Zen koans march like ants on a crust Every word crush til it turn into dust “Does a sparrow fall when nobody see?” “Who is this watcher that’s watchin as me?” Birdseed thief and the skull-crowned priest Same ghost grin from the same old feast [Chorus] Back woods death priest in a circle of bone Possum under my shed on a seed-lick throne I’m listenin to riddles that unmake stone Every crack in the night say I ain’t alone Back woods death priest in a circle of bone Possum got a halo of wrappers and foam Koans march past like a slow cyclone All the forest in my chest beatin like it grown [Bridge] [Beat drops to bass, finger snaps, distant owl call] Is the priest in the pines or the priest in my head? (yeah) Is the possum the thief or the prayer I fed? (uh) If a thought touch down and it leave no trace Did it ever really dance in this crooked place? [Chorus] Back woods death priest in a circle of bone Possum under my shed lickin offerings gone I’m countin these koans like stones I’ve thrown Every question that I ask just points me home