Portland, Maine Lyrics

i draw lines in the sand
just to cross them and say
'there was never a chance to make it'
the atlantic be my witness
i'm too deep in this
i'm too deep in this
ropes looped around my limbs
tied to a bag in which
i drag along behind me
the shame of generations
it obliterates my footprints
and makes it harder to advance
but as long as I keep up this play
they will never see me sweat,
oh, they will never see me sweat.
i carry the weight of attention on my shoulders
a state that once frightened me to death
now gives the comfort of meaning
and a sense of alignment
i would otherwise miss

i collect all the things,
washed up to the shore,
that were lost in the vast, open ocean.
in the hope to find that one piece,
i can hold onto.
roots anchored in the soil,
wrapped 'round the bodies of
the ones that toiled beside me
to be never forgotten,
to be covered in the sawdust
of a benchmark to the sea,
but as long as it won't leave this port
they will never know my name,
oh, they will never know my name.