Production: warm piano, Wurlitzer, soft brushed drums, intimate female vocal They sold the rail lines Sold the phones Sold the places We called Home One by one Behind closed doors Till everything Had an owner ⸻ [Verse 1] There was a bench beside the river Where nobody had to pay A place to sit with grief or wonder & simply watch the day There was a pool There was a rink There were lights left on at closing A country isn’t only borders It’s the places we’re composing ⸻ [Pre-Chorus] What happens to a People When every door becomes a fee? ⸻ [Chorus] Don’t sell me the last public thing Don’t fence the Sky Don’t price the Spring Don’t put a logo On belonging Don’t sell me The last public thing ⸻ [Verse 2] Library cards & winter coats CBC on snowy nights TVO teaching curious kids To ask the questions right Students Dreamers New arrivals Finding stories to unfold A quiet room A borrowed Future Warm against the winter cold Shelves of possibility One of the last safe places You could enter & simply be ⸻ [Pre-Chorus] What happens to a people When every kindness needs a brand? ⸻ [Chorus] Don’t sell me the last public thing Don’t fence the Sky Don’t price the Spring Don’t put a logo On belonging Don’t sell me The last public thing ⸻ [Bridge] Because a nation isn’t merchandise & citizenship isn’t stock Some things must stay In common hands When markets stop There must be places That remain For every child Every elder Every name ⸻ [Bridge 2 – Lift] Not everything valuable Can be owned Not everything sacred Can be sold Not every river Needs a sponsor Not every heart Needs a role Not every lesson Needs a price tag Not every neighbour Needs a score Leave a few lights burning For the ones still looking for the door ⸻ Verse 3 The Moon hung over every childhood Free as wonder, free as song Silver on the lakes & rooftops Dances there all Night long Now they’re talking about ‘extraction!’ Calling it ‘the Next Frontier!’ Must every Beautiful Thing be harvested ‘Til nothing sacred lingers here? As if the Night belongs to someone Holding title to the Sky Putting price tags on Forever Then acting shocked when Spirits die ⸻ [Final Chorus] Don’t sell me the last public thing The park The school The medicine The library lights Still glowing For someone walking in Don’t sell me the last public thing Leave something For the ones who come A bench A book A helping hand A country shared By everyone ⸻ [Outro] Leave the lights on Leave the door unlocked Leave one place That still belongs To us all
