The Notebook Stays

Lyrics

[Verse 1] I found the notebook in a kitchen drawer Its paper yellowed where the rain came through A list of towns I swore I’d see someday And little plans I thought the years would do [Verse 2] The old guitar still leans beside the chair One string goes dull before the tune is through I used to wake before the morning bus And write the life I meant to make come true [Chorus] Maybe I waited too long to begin Maybe the road has already gone by I keep the pages, though the ink has thinned And let those names sit quiet by my side If there’s a door, I can’t see where it is If there’s a chance, it’s smaller than before I’m standing here with all I meant to be And wondering what I was saving it for [Verse 3] My mother asks if I still think of leaving I say, “Some day,” the way I always do She folds the dish towel, looks out at the garden And lets the silence answer for us two [Bridge] I don’t blame the years for passing They were full of work and keeping on But somewhere in the ordinary mornings The person I imagined slipped and gone [Final Chorus] Maybe I waited too long to begin Maybe the road has already gone by I keep the pages, though the ink has thinned And let those names sit quiet by my side Still, I can open one small blank page Though I don’t know what I’d write it for I’m standing here with all I meant to be And one unlatched window in the door [Outro] The notebook stays beside the chair The morning comes; I’m still right here