[Verse 1] Do not make a theater of it Do not call the cousins in Do not let the town decide The last cloth that touches skin I have walked the corpse road with you I have stood the lychgate rain I have watched a box learn gravity And I will not do that dance again If the year takes me in October If the house goes colder still I want one pair of living hands And I want them to be skilled and real [Pre-Chorus] Not silk Not gold Not a sermon on my name Plain cloth Plain night Do the work and do not decorate the pain [Chorus] Wrap me when you’re done When the talking has worn through Wrap me when you’re done I only want it done by you If the dead must have their mile Let it start in this one room Wrap me when you’re done And then take me out of view [Verse 2] You already know my stubborn places You already know the scar You already know the August When the rooms went winter-hard So do not hire a gentle stranger To make my mouth look kind I did not live here as a picture I will not leave here as a lie Use the sheet we kept for guests Use the quiet we already made Tie it simple. Tie it honest Then go back to your own day [Pre-Chorus] Not silk Not gold Not a crowd along the fence One lamp One task Then the road can have the rest [Chorus] Wrap me when you’re done When the talking has worn through Wrap me when you’re done I only want it done by you If the dead must have their mile Let it start in this one room Wrap me when you’re done And then take me out of view [Verse 3] I am not asking you to follow Past the gate into the trees I am asking for the threshold Where the living still can see After that the custom owns it After that the line will form After that you get the house And the frost, and the warm I would rather be a burden You can finish with your hands Than a story they keep telling Like they ever understand [Bridge] This is love in its last practical This is not a pretty vow This is me trusting your quiet More than any holy mouth If you cry, cry after If you break, break later on Do the wrapping while you still Can make the knot stay strong [Breakdown] Cloth Fold Tuck Stay Cloth Fold Then walk away No speech No show That is how I want to go [Verse 4] If October comes and I am still here Put this song back on the shelf I am not in love with leaving I am in love with being dealt with well But the cold taught me a lesson In a coat along a hook Endings happen in the ordinary And they ought to have an honest look So remember, if you have to I asked early. I asked plain Wrap me when you’re done Then give the dead mile my name [Chorus] Wrap me when you’re done When the talking has worn through Wrap me when you’re done I only want it done by you If the dead must have their mile Let it start in this one room Wrap me when you’re done And then take me out of view [Final Chorus] Wrap me when you’re done Do not linger on the face Wrap me when you’re done Leave the house a living place If you meet me on that road You do not owe me any debt You already did the kindness When you finished and you left [Outro] Lamp out Door shut Road waiting That is enough Wrap me when you’re done Then go
