The Painful Gift

[Sparse Intro: eerie prepared piano ostinato, distant distorted cello drones]

[Verse 1]
I see the streetlights bending through a shattered glass
A million colors that the crowd just walks right past
They see a pavement, I see a burning map
I live inside the silence of a thunderclap
The privilege of looking through a different lens
Is knowing how the circle starts and where it ends

[Chorus]
But it's a beautiful curse, a heavy crown to wear
To see the future standing in the freezing air
They call it madness when you refuse to bend
Isolated at the table, talking to the wind
But in the dark, the quiet power starts to grow
The hands that feel the pain are those that change the show

[Verse 2: detuned synth leads, glitch chopped percussion]
My eyes are cameras catching what they try to hide
A quiet war of colors fighting deep inside
The punishment is standing right outside the door
While they are dancing on a safe and level floor
I am the glitch inside their perfect, tidy code
An island burning at the turning of the road

[Chorus]
But it's a beautiful curse, a heavy crown to wear
To see the future standing in the freezing air
They call it madness when you refuse to bend
Isolated at the table, talking to the wind
But in the dark, the quiet power starts to grow
The hands that feel the pain are those that change the show

[Bridge: explosive bass wave drops, bittersweet defiance]
They hate the vision, but they need the light
They fear the stranger walking in the night
It hurts to see the world they cannot feel
To touch the phantom and to make it real
But I won't close my eyes to make them comfortable!

[Outro: plate reverb, fading piano chords]
Seeing it all.
Feeling apart.
The painful gift.
The silent power.
My actual eyes.