The Dancer

By the morning I will be gone
I'll rip the plastic flamingo
Out of the astro-turf lawn

The dancer swept the white powder
Onto the floor
Slid off her bed and went straight though the door
There was a tap and a click
Of her heels on the pavement
And a shadow watching her go

She was livid and red
Like the blood in the sink
With a shock, she thought
Oh God, what would my mother think
The tap and the click of her heels ringing loudly
And a shadow watching her go

She said
By the morning I will be gone
I'll rip the plastic flamingo
Out of the astro-turf lawn

So the dancer packed her suitcase
Full of her things
Picket signs, blue paint, hard candy rings
Resolute, she left her dog on the porch
And the shadow tasted her torch

So give it a try
She whispered from the back of that Greyhound
The brakes failed
She made promises on the way down

Oh! Nothing's promised
But the white powder still stained her shoes
With a tap and a click
The shadow's got nothing to lose

By the morning I will be gone
I'll rip the plastic flamingo
Out of the astro-turf lawn

So dancer, tell me how does it feel
From the front
Does the wind blow your hair
Until the show's done
Would you rather be back in that room full of blue
Where nobody really knows you

She said
I don't know the next turn or the one after that
But I know it's time I wiped off this lipstick
And faced up to the facts

By the morning I will be gone
I'll rip the plastic flamingo
Out of the astro-turf lawn