Let Me Stay - Heather Maloney

My brother’s old room used to be mine

And all of our posters have changed over time

Now all of our idols are on the tip of our tongues

And we can’t recall what’s-his-name, over eggnog and rum

And my brother’s old room used to be mine

Now my mother’s old paintings can finally shine

And fill all the spaces where celebrities posed

I woke up this morning in a room that I know

My brother’s old room used to be mine

He painted it blue when I left it behind

Now my mother’s old Alvarez leans up against white

In the brand new guest room where I slept last night

And let me stay, a little longer

And let me rest, let me belong here

I am a guest in every room I’ve ever known

And if my brother’s old ceiling gets just enough sun

The shapes of our made-up constellations

Glow in a pattern that I knew by heart

I woke up in the morning and picked up her guitar

And on my mother’s old Alvarez, from '76

I wrote down this song as a bargaining chip

To capture a moment from merciless time

To stay in a room that I know, for a while

And let me stay, a little longer

Let me rest, let me belong here

I am a guest in every room I’ve ever known

My brother’s old room, this morning is mine

And someday a stranger will wake to this light

And this illumination is a passage of rite

And the lineage of visitors grows a little in size

Four walls and a window opposite the door

I pack up my bag and I leave it once more

Another holiday ends in a teary embrace

Because even our bodies are places we stay

Because even our bodies are places we stay

And let me stay, a little longer

Let me rest, let me belong here

I am a guest in every room

I’m just a guest, I’ll be going soon

I am a guest in every room I’ve ever known