Lyric

You called when something needed

A back that would not bend

A mouth to keep things level

A hand to make it end

I learned to come in pieces

The useful parts arrived

My shoulders took the pressure

My name stayed out of sight

The more I gave my weight there

The less you had to see

You held the work between us

And called the shadow me

You needed my hands

But never held them

You asked for my strength

Then left me to spend it

I was useful, not cherished

A surface, not a self

You took what I could carry

And put down nothing else

You softened when I helped you

You warmed when I was good

You almost looked toward me

When I did what I should

I mistook being needed

For something close to care

I made myself available

And called the distance fair

The more I made it easy

The less I could refuse

I fit inside your wanting

Until I felt like use

You needed my hands

But never held them

You asked for my strength

Then left me to spend it

I was useful, not cherished

A surface, not a self

You took what I could carry

And put down nothing else

I made myself convenient

A door that did not close

A body you could borrow

Whenever silence froze

I called it being wanted

When I was only near

I stayed because the needing

Almost sounded clear

You needed my hands

But never held them

You asked for my strength

Then left me to spend it

I was used, not held

Needed, never kept

You took the part that served you

And left the rest unsaid

I take my hands back slowly

They shake, but they are mine

You can keep the empty shape

I step out of the line