Rattled By Failure
The Paperbacks
We're not rattled by failure now.
Statements slurred, terms are altered.
The air stalls as we venture out of key.
And the words turn so vicious
as these stakes that were so small gets torn in three.
Unlearned parts, a constant ringing,
a smudged stamp on your hand and a vacant stare.
Fed our hearts on these fantasies.
Now these hearts have grown brutal from the fare.
You pit art against reason.
Though the two aren't opposed.
This recurring theme contaminates your dreams.
We're not rattled by failure now.
Absolutes and autumn deadlines,
they just pass like a fever. Like idle dares.
See this through. See it ending.
You retreat to go dye your dulling hair.
Standing mute as a starfish
as the bright lights and music start to recede.
It consecrates your dreams.
We take failure for granted now.
They maintain our feet on solid ground
while it clings like a cloud of bees to me.
A halo of sand in the cuffs of faded jeans.
To wallpaper our room with rejection slips.
To slowly wet the circumference of our lips
and admit the coldest form of defeat.
It was all just a dream.
Share
More from The Paperbacks
Communicated Through Blood
The Paperbacks
No Fatalities
The Paperbacks
In the Absence of Notable Guests
The Paperbacks
Holocaust Art
The Paperbacks
Inspired Casting
The Paperbacks
Publish or Perish
The Paperbacks
Things Get Abstract
The Paperbacks
Make Art
The Paperbacks
A Dizzy Chain of Bees
The Paperbacks
Hesitation Marks
The Paperbacks
Plans in Advance
The Paperbacks
Institutions
The Paperbacks
Skinny Sidewalks
The Paperbacks
A Northern Allowance
The Paperbacks
All Available Light
The Paperbacks
Clifton Square
The Paperbacks
Raise a Styrofoam Cup
The Paperbacks
Books As Furniture
The Paperbacks
My Landscape is Not Land
The Paperbacks
An Episode of Sparrows
The Paperbacks