When I draw on your face 
Like the tear on the crying 
When I’m touching your skin 
Like the hands of a blind man 
When I'm watching your lips 
Like a climber the mountain 
When I follow your voice 
Like the hound-dog a trace 
And fall into your eyes 
Like things fall into place 
Leave me some space to form 

When I harvest your smell 
Like the farmer his field  
When I rest in your hair  
Like the bird in the air  
When I’m saying your name  
Like the preacher a prayer  
And I’m tying my shadow  
To the shadow you throw  
And fall into your eyes  
Like things fall into place 
Leave me some space to form  

When I’m bending my love  
Around the corners you grow  
When I lie by your side  
And we’re taking it slow  
When I turn off the light  
For our intimate show  
I’m tying my shadow  
To the shadow you throw  
And fall into your eyes  
Like things fall into place  
Into the space you form

They took me away, I was so afraid  
But I was keeping the feeling a secret  
These people were family but strangers to me  
And I’d learned to show no signs of weakness  

I slept on a hard bed with the other children  
They all were as quiet as me  
Tried to lie awake for as long as I could  
Afraid that it wasn’t a dream  
When the sirens where sounding and the earth it was pounding  
It pierced me down to the bone  
No beast in this land could kill a man  
We had to do it on our own  

            In the dark of the night we fled from the light  
            Of the burning city behind us  
            To a northern isle, where I would stay a while  
            It looked like a knife from up high  

And soon the days lay a lot lighter on me  
The sandy dune soft as a throne 
No sound but the north wind beating the sea  
And the sirens of ships coming home 
When the golden-haired girl sat down by my side  
I followed the sunlight into her eyes  
She covered me up like the incoming tide  
And I had no more secrets to hide  

            We could see the coastline from afar  
            It cut through the ocean like a scar  
            I don’t remember my brother, he died in the war  
            When I found my love on the North Sea Shore  

The pillows got softer as the years went by  
I caught myself dreaming from time to time   
I’ve seen much of the world with the love of mine     
I’ve had good life, it’s true 
Sometimes she still finds me locked in a stare  
She used to ask me what got me there  
When it now gets more than I can bear  
She just comes closer to hold me  

            Our children have grown, with some of their own  
            It’s been a long time since I was alone  
            Sure, I’d like to stay, but time is slipping away  
            One of these days it will be over

Where the stairs lead out of the subway  
Right behind the bicycle stands 
A man is sitting by the sidewalk 
Holding a blanket in his hands 

            And sometimes when you pass by 
            You can see him rehearsing a grin 
            He’s sitting on the street  
            At the mercy of the wind  

A couple stands close within sight 
Still wearing the chill of the night 
After six years of watching her smoke 
She chokes on the last one he lights  

            With a light nod of his head 
            He sends a tear down to his chin 
            It rests a moment on the bone 
            At the mercy of the wind  

At the crossroad a car has stopped 
Where the traffic lights turned red 
The driver is solemnly staring 
Down the hard road up ahead  

            You cannot see it on the surface  
            But a storm is rising up in him  
            It won’t be long until he’s  
            At the mercy of the wind  

We’ve crossed the street many times 
And were part of the scene for a while 
We’re really just passing by 
Not paying it any mind 
But aren’t we all on the border of chaos and order 
Barely walking the line?  
The wind might turn any time 
And we might end up rehearsing a smile  

            Life is only a series of games  
            Some we lose, some we win  
            Leaving our delicate flames  
            At the mercy of the wind