I bought a map from a man with no direction He drew a circle and called it an exit The sky sent a bill for my reflection So I folded it into a paper helmet I keep my balance like a rumor on a wire Cheap little sparks in a shopping-cart fire My shadow grew up and got taller than me Now it signs my name when I’m trying to leave I wore my best shoes to the edge of the curb Practiced my landing without saying a word The pavement looked bored The clouds looked amused I called it a choice So I couldn’t lose Every warning sign was facing the wrong way Every open door had something left to say I tied a little ribbon to the weight around my waist Then smiled for the camera as it pulled me into space Gravity has bad timing Always calls when I’m climbing I wave from the way down Like I meant to leave the ground Paint a gold frame around it Tell the whole room I found it Some people fall apart I just fall like modern art Down But make it look expensive Down Like the floor was my invention I built a throne from the boxes I came in Sat like a king with the warranty fading The wheels kept turning after I stepped off A tiny parade for a very big loss There’s a soft little crash at the end of the joke A puff of confetti and somebody’s smoke I laughed through my teeth Till the picture went still You can’t miss the summit When you live on the hill Every souvenir was heavier than truth Every broken mirror kept a different version of you I drew a little doorway on the side of the cage Then ran into the wall like I was rushing offstage Gravity has bad timing Always calls when I’m climbing I wave from the way down Like I meant to leave the ground Paint a gold frame around it Tell the whole room I found it Some people fall apart I just fall like modern art No wings Just excellent branding No plan Just a beautiful landing No crown Just a helmet-shaped halo No road But I still say, “This way, though” Maybe the joke was a coat that I wore Two sizes too big so they’d ask me for more Maybe the noise was a room I could hide in A siren with nowhere to go but inside it And maybe the fall isn’t losing the height Maybe it’s proof that you stood there one night With your hands in the air And your name out of view While the whole crooked world Tried to look just like you Gravity has bad timing Still, I answer while climbing I wave from the way down Like a king without a crown Paint a gold frame around it Let the silence surround it Some people fear the dark I leave skid marks through the stars I bought a map from a man with no direction He drew a circle and called it an exit So I followed the line Till it looked like the sky
