The Polished Floor

[Intro]
[Verse]
The scent of ammonia
A slow-motion insomnia
I buff the scuffs
Till the surface is tough
Streetlights flicker
Like a slow-moving liquor
Pouring over the cracks
In the sidewalk tracks
I see the rust
In the things we trust
[Pre-Chorus]
Nobody sees the dust fly
Under the charcoal sky
But I keep the rhythm
In this urban prison
[Chorus]
It’s the quiet work
Where the shadows lurk
Keeping the world turning
While the neon’s burning
A steady hand in the dark
Leaving an invisible mark
No applause for the floor
Just a key in the door
[Verse]
Old Mrs. Gable
At her kitchen table
Counting out her pills
While the radiator chills
The pipes groan
Like a low saxophone
I fix the broken latch
With a wooden match
Small repairs
For the heavy cares
[Bridge]
Rhodes keys drifting
As the weight is shifting
Vinyl crackle in the ear
Drowning out the fear
It’s not about the fame
Or the weight of a name
[Chorus]
It’s the quiet work
Where the shadows lurk
Keeping the world turning
While the neon’s burning
A steady hand in the dark
Leaving an invisible mark
No applause for the floor
Just a key in the door
[Verse]
My father’s palms
Were his only psalms
He taught me the grace
Of a clean, open space
Not the noise of the street
But the shuffle of feet
Consistent and slow
Watching the garden grow
In the cracks of the stone
Never truly alone
[Post-Chorus]
Let the flugelhorn play
For the end of the day
Let the wax shine bright
In the middle of the night
Softly we tread
Where the spirits are led
[Outro]