Sisters

I tied your shoes while you sat and watched the rain

Hands folded across your lap, and the dull look of peace across your face

Mom down the hall, Bible pressed to her chest

She swore the Devil hides in everything, and her room was the only safe haven left

She watched us grow through windowpanes

Something in the middle, something in the middle

Something in the middle, something's in the way

You held my hand while the wind whistled nocturnes in the dark

Something in the middle, something in the middle

Something in the middle, something's in the way

We never knew what it meant to be whole and free

Something in the middle, something in the middle

Something in the middle, something's in the way

We knew what we lost if we strayed from paths only they could see

But sink or swim is all they'd say

Your hand rode the wind out the window of the train

We slept in our seats with our knees curled beneath our dirty chins

Dad gripped the bags like they might fly away

And the scenery beyond the glass was liquid, we sat and soaked it in

I felt your breath along the way

I'd hold your hand when the sky fell apart

And you'd hold my hand if you felt me slipping back into the dark

Can't tell from the ground if the sky will fall

Can't tell from the sky if there's anybody down there at all

It's empty hands or empty plates