Top Shelf by Kathy Zimmer

On the top shelf of my closet
Right next to the attic
In the dark where no one can see
Under a stack of magazines
In a box locked up without the key
Are troubles and bad memories
That stay far out of reach

I thought maybe I needed to open it
But I decided it’s not worth it
The hurts can stay inside and out of view
Incidents I’ve forgotten
But my dreams have haunted
Don’t deserve my nerves
I’ve forgotten you

Instead I’ll step into the sunshine
Wave good-bye to all of that
I carried that weight on my shoulders
For too long, and that’s a fact
Throw on a pair of sunglasses
And bask in the brightness at hand
Hey all, I think I’m over it, it’s all gone
Would you look at that

I had to work out some things
From way back, in the past
I caught them all and clipped their wings
Pinned them down, and now they’re stashed
In an album showing life as it had been once, way back
I could peruse it if I wanted
But I think I’ll pass

Like an ant carries its body weight times twenty
All that brought me down, and plenty
Like an ant carries its body weight times thirty
Look how strong I got, I tossed it off
Like something dead and dirty

• Alternative
• alternative
• indie
• indie folk
• indie rock
• singer
• singer-songwriter
• vocal
• New York