Afraid to Wear My Garments

[Verse 1] If I put my garments on, this body wakes up scared. They will steam, crawl up my neck, wrap slowly round my throat. Compressed embrace, unyielding chains and I can hear them say, (this is love) Who is they? Taught by a book, they call it good. [Chorus] If I put my garments on they say, “this is love.” Who is they? Who is they? “These are good…” “These are good…” High heads, stiff necks, solid virtues. [Verse 2] Growing-taut-tight in the ribs, I feel the rules press in. In the marrow and the spine, their hands keep measuring me. You must hold rigid precepts with both hands, like bread. You must stand firmly here, feet nailed in the dust. [Chorus] If I put my garments on they say, “this is love.” Who is they? Who is they? “These are good…” “These are good…” High heads, stiff necks, solid virtues. [Verse 3] I want a cloth that lets me breathe, a seam that learns my shape. Not a collar cut from fear, not a silence tied too tight. If I bow, I do not break. If I soften, I am here. I am not a lesson you can fold and keep. [Chorus] If I put my garments on they say, “this is love.” Who is they? Who is they? “These are good…” “These are good…” High heads, stiff necks, solid virtues.