Every Sorrow - Joe Henry

Safely in strong arms I lie now

Torn, the flags, but still they fly now;

Memories of the cold Decembers

Trampled roses, cloves and embers—

Gone the shadows deep divisions

That trade on hopes with steep conditions…

After every sorrow comes a joy

But every sorrow knows one more

Theives are cornered, smoking lanterns swing

Threadbare shoulders rolling under wings—

Sliding from her arms, conforming

Darkest eyes to brightest morning

Stealing back through woods and ditches

Pulling out the crooked stitches…

After every sorrow comes a joy

But every thief, he knows one more

I envy the sky its open arms

Its hidden eye, its howling false alarms;

The way it moves above you trembling

The day it breaks to pull you in, then

Curtain of its heart descending

Spiriting the sun its ending…

After every sorrow comes a joy

But every howl hides one more

This may challenge all our senses

Hold us tight within its fences—

But singing out, her gate stands open

For all the world, so weak and broken

A story giving all a framing

A face that waits but for a naming…

After every sorrow comes a joy

And every story knows one more