Don't Wind Me, Darling

Lyrics

[Intro] In the cupboard behind the wedding plates A little wooden girl still waits [Verse 1] Her porcelain cheek has a hairline seam One glass eye guards the sewing room dream A red thread circles her painted hand Tied to a key no one understands Mother put her away last spring Wrapped in lace with a silver pin But every dawn by the kitchen door There are tiny wet footprints on the floor [Pre-Chorus] I hear three knocks inside the wall Then her small voice says my name [Chorus] Don’t wind me, darling, leave me still The house remembers what I will Turn the key and watch me rise With somebody else behind my eyes Don’t wind me, darling, let me sleep Some promises are buried deep If you hear my wooden heart begin Close the door and don’t let me in [Verse 2] Tonight the nursery smells of rain Her ribbon hangs from the windowpane The rocking horse moves without a hand And dust falls down like winter sand I found her sitting on my bed With a little black bow around her head Her painted lips were split apart And something warm was in her heart [Pre-Chorus] She lifted one chipped porcelain arm And pointed underneath the stairs [Chorus] Don’t wind me, darling, leave me still The house remembers what I will Turn the key and watch me rise With somebody else behind my eyes Don’t wind me, darling, let me sleep Some promises are buried deep If you hear my wooden heart begin Close the door and don’t let me in [Bridge] I took the key and threw it down the well But from below, a music-box began A child was humming through the stones And every note became my own Now when I blink, she blinks with me When I breathe, she breathes beneath There’s a red thread wrapped around my wrist And I can’t remember who I miss [Final Chorus] Don’t wind me, darling, leave me still The house remembers what I will Turn the key and watch me rise With somebody else behind my eyes Don’t wind me, darling, let me sleep Some promises are buried deep If you hear my wooden heart begin Open the door and let me in [Outro] In the cupboard behind the wedding plates A little wooden girl still waits One glass eye, a crooked smile And my voice calling from inside