Lyric

Comfort kept the kettle warm

Kept the curtain halfway drawn

Kept my coat beside the chair

Like I would never need it on

The walls were kind for a while

They held the winter out

But every year I breathed more softly

Afraid to make a sound

I knew each mark upon the table

I knew the floor by heart

I knew the way the evening settled

Before the dark could start

But safety can become a ceiling

If you never look above

And what once felt like shelter

Can begin to shrink your love

I do not hate the place

That kept me from the storm

But I was not made

To stay the same shape forevermore

Open the window

Let the cold air through

Something wider is waiting

For the life inside of you

You can thank what held you

Then loosen your hand

Somewhere beyond the doorway

You are allowed to expand

The small room had my old name

Written into dust

A cup, a lamp, a quiet rule

That said enough is enough

I folded one familiar morning

And placed it by the door

Not to throw away my past

But to need it less than before

There is mercy in leaving

When staying makes you dim

There is courage in noticing

You no longer fit within

Open the window

Let the cold air through

Something wider is waiting

For the life inside of you

You can thank what held you

Then loosen your hand

Somewhere beyond the doorway

You are allowed to expand

Maybe you will miss it

The lamp, the chair, the floor

The gentle little sameness

That asked for nothing more

But your breath has grown restless

Your hands have found the frame

You are not betraying shelter

By stepping out changed

Open the window

Let the cold air through

Something wider is waiting

For the life inside of you

You can thank what held you

Then loosen your hand

Somewhere beyond the doorway

You are allowed to expand