Farrar, Straus & Giroux (Sea of Tears)

It was back amongst the living

Your smile was giving me a thrill

Enough to come so close to closing the deal

The steal of a century

A century stolen from our hearts to a house on the hill

But if that is what it takes

If that is what it takes

If that is what it takes

To be a stone, a stone's throw from your throne

No man has ever hung from the rafters of a second home

No man has ever hung from the rafters of a second home

It's true

I needed you more back when I was poor

The wealthy dowager, the patroness, she guessed it

The answer wasn't yes

But her maxims were fine

The ethos that flew about her mind

Like swallows in search of a burned-down bell tower church

But if that is what it takes

If that is what it takes

If that is what it takes

To be a stone, a stone's throw from your throne

No man has ever hung at the temporary age of 24

Both feet on the floor

Listening to the bonafide stasis of sound

The eaves dripping yesterday's

Ill-timed August rain

If there is such a thing as ill-timed August rain