From the recording Happening: A Movement in 12 Acts
Lyrics
9 - Protagonist
So many times I’ve shed my skin
That I don’t know whose I’m in
A pirate’s sense of justice
That in the end it all evens out
Have you ever been betrayed?
Still feel the sting of mistakes you’ve made?
I can’t get high enough
To get away from the pain
It’s a disgrace
Why rehabilitate I ask her
If a man can’t redeem himself
What good is justice?
There’s no happy ending
No one gets out alive
I’ll try to calm down now
And let it catch up to me
But it’s been on my tail for so long
People drift and sometimes slip away
They don’t want you to change
The leaves turn, so does the clock
Could you believe I could come back a different man?
Give it one more shot, start anew again
Things have changed, faces and names
But the ghosts are still the same
Going back after something you think you are
The most miserable are those who got what they wanted
I’m willing to risk it
I’ve tried the other way
I look around at watchful eyes
And think they know my fate
They tried to get me when I was young
But I’m no use to them anymore
I try to see the good in the world
But it’s harder every day
I cede the battle between black and white
Now it’s only grey
The devil never makes you do anything
He just leads you to the killing floor
Halfway home and almost gone
Slipping fast but hanging on
I shouldn’t have expected to be fulfilled
The flesh may be weak but the spirit can’t be killed
Someone here please tell me what you want me to do
I’ve stopped trying, nothing’s getting through
I spoke up once and stood my ground
Just to have them knock me down
There’s a difference between quitting
And knowing when you’re beat
You don’t believe that, do you?
Out there on the street
I should know
I’ve been here before
Give ‘em all you got
They only ask for more