East Forks – Maggie Wing

Up north at East Forks
There’s a stand of ponderosa with a bare spot underneath
I know nothing grows
Where a memory takes hold and turns to poison at your feet

It’s been years since they found you up there
One shot in the April air
Your last words in this world
In an envelope at home on the kitchen chair

Maybe you just lost it
Or maybe you won
But take back the last thing that you said
It’d be a whole lot easier on everyone

Every night I feed this black machine
Every day I wake up to a thousand broken things

Now you have the long view
You’ve got the whole thing in perspective, you’ve got an angel’s mental health
But down here it’s a tough year
And barring accidents or suicide I’m stuck here with myself

Every sidewalk seems impossible
Every streetlight’s turning black
But I think one more drink
And I’ll probably figure out how to get this thing on track

You’re washed clean and I’m nothing but stains
Last words last forever — that’s a fact I can’t explain

Maybe you just lost it
Or maybe you won
But take back the last thing that you said
It’d be a whole lot easier on everyone
It’d be a whole lot easier on everyone