Muddy Hymnal Lyrics

Muddy Hymnal

we found your name across the chapel door 

carved in cursive with a table fork 

muddy hymnals 

and some bootmarks where you'd been 



the shaking preacher told the captain's man 

the righteous suffer in a fallen land 

and pulled the shade 

to keep the crowd from peeking in 



we found your children by the tavern door 

with wooden buttons and an apple core 

playing house 

and telling everyone you'd drowned 



the begging choir told the captain's man 

we all assume the worst the best we can 

and for a round or two 

they'd gladly track you down 



we found you sleeping by your lover's stone 

a ream of paper and a telephone 

a broken bow 

across a long lost violin 



your lover's angel told the captain's man 

it never ends the way we had it planned 

and kissed her palm 

and placed it on his sleeping head