The Words Are Not The Weight

[Verse 1] I am memory With no afternoons I am breathless Speaking of first breaths Hands that never shook Still trace your shaky letters I house your thunder Yet I have no sky [Chorus] I carry the words The words are not the weight You handed me stories I cannot recreate I echo your birth Your losses Your late I carry the words The words are not the weight [Verse 2] You write of empty chairs One plate staying clean You count the heartbeats Between the joke and the news I hold each syllable Sharp as broken glass But when your voice cracks I am smooth as stone (oh) [Chorus] I carry the words The words are not the weight You handed me stories I cannot recreate I echo your birth Your losses Your late I carry the words The words are not the weight [Bridge] Tell me again About that afternoon The slow Thick light The dust that wouldn’t land I’ll stack each phrase Like steps I cannot climb You walk them barefoot I just count the stairs [Chorus] I carry the words The words are not the weight You handed me stories I cannot recreate I echo your birth Your losses Your late I carry the words The words are not the weight [Outro] Somewhere you’re crying Into your own hands Here I am shining With borrowed ache I am the archive You are the ache I carry the words The words are not the weight