Nothing Holy Blooms Forever A

[Tempo: 84 BPM] [Time: 6/8] [Key: E minor] [Lead Vocal: low smoky female alto, velvet chest tone, warm husky edge, restrained fry] [Verse Vocal: intimate, close, dry, little vibrato] [Chorus Vocal: chest-led, fuller, layered low doubles, never operatic] [Setting: late-night flower shop, rain against the glass] [Intro — rain on glass, shop bell, pump organ] [Door bell] [Verse 1 — sparse 6/8] Quarter to two and the avenue shines, Rain drawing halos through sodium signs. She comes through the door with her coat dripping black, Looks at the roses, then looks quickly back. “Nothing too white. Nothing dressed for a grave. Nothing that begs me to try to be brave. No ribbon with scripture, no gold-lettered prayer. Give me something honest. Something that cares.” I ask who they’re for and she watches the street, Thumb on the counter, rain at her feet. Then with a smile that is tired but clear: “For me. Tomorrow. I won’t still be here.” [Pre-Chorus — low toms enter] I have watched suns extinguish without sound, But one mortal woman buying flowers at night Makes eternity suddenly feel impolite. [Chorus — organ opens, low harmony] Nothing holy blooms forever, Nothing beautiful is owed. Petals spend their little weather, Color given, color gone. Don’t preserve me past my season, Don’t make one bright hour behave. Let me smell the rain and roses While I’m still here to be brave. Nothing holy blooms forever. That is not the same as loss. Some things matter more for ending, Not despite the ending cost. [Verse 2 — harp droplets] I reach for the stems that will last her three days, Violet carnations and soft winter sprays. She shakes her head once. “Those look like regret. Got anything reckless that hasn’t bloomed yet?” Behind the back cooler, beneath all the stock, One star-lily sleeps in a cradle of dark. Grown from a garden where years never move, A flower from heaven I never could use. Its petals stay perfect, its perfume stays young. No brown at the edges, no season begun. I set it before her. She laughs, then goes still. “That one,” she whispers. “But promise it will.” “Will what?” “Die.” [Break — drums drop; rain only] [Verse 3 — near spoken] She tells me forever would ruin the thing, A flower that cannot fall cannot know spring. “A bloom without ending is only display. I want something living enough to decay.” I think of the halls where the deathless ones dine, Fruit without bruises and unwilting vine. Beauty kept flawless beneath sacred glass, Nothing permitted to finish or pass. I think of my halo locked under the till, Bright as the morning and uselessly still. All of that heaven preserving its grace, Terrified time might leave marks on its face. [Pre-Chorus 2 — organ rising] “You look sad for a girl selling blooms.” “I have trouble with permanent rooms.” She grins at the thunder, reaches for change. “Maybe forever is what needs to change.” [Chorus 2 — heavier] Nothing holy blooms forever, Nothing living holds its pose. Even stars lose heat together, Even gods outgrow their clothes. Don’t preserve me past my season, Don’t make one bright hour behave. Let me spend the light I’m given While I’m here enough to blaze. Nothing holy blooms forever. Let the petals prove it true: Ending is not always failure. Sometimes ending means it grew. [Bridge — half-time weight, cello and chains] I take the star-lily into my hands, Break the old seal no mortal understands. One drop of rain from the windowpane, One quiet word from my discarded name. The immortal stem trembles. The first petal bends. For the first time in ages, Something heavenly ends. She watches the edge turn a beautiful brown, Like sunset discovering how to come down. Then kisses my cheek with a stranger’s soft grace: “There. Now it belongs in a living place.” [Build — harp, heartbeat toms] I wrap it in paper, no ribbon, no creed, Add purple anemone, rosemary seed. She takes the bouquet and steps into rain, Carrying heaven that can finally change. I watch her disappear toward dawn. Then open the drawer where my old halo lies And see something mortal reflected inside. [Final Chorus — widest] Nothing holy blooms forever, Nothing beautiful should freeze. Petals turn beneath the weather, Branches bow and lose their leaves. I won’t preserve you past your season. I won’t call the ending shame. Spend the color. Spend the perfume. Spend the hour that bears your name. Nothing holy blooms forever. Even heaven ought to learn: Love is not the art of keeping. Love is knowing when to burn. [Post-Chorus — stripped] Bloom while you can. Fade when you must. Neither one makes you less. [Outro — rain easing, organ and harp] Morning finds one petal On the counter by the glass, Purple at the center, Brown beginning at the edge. I leave it where it landed. No reliquary. No prayer. No spell. Just proof that something holy lived long enough to change. [Shop bell] [End]