Pride is a feeling that swells
It churns, rumbles, grows
Within the chest it dwells
Ready to put on a show

Past the nose the eyes do gaze
Twinkling wickedly in the light
But what they hide is a murky haze
Cast only by a consuming fright

Sure, it's nice to be on top
Confidence is quite the virtue
But, I beg you not to stop
Because I'm seeing the me that is you

So, keep looking down
Hold your chin up high
Don't dare to frown
Don't dare to cry

It's nice to be on top
We know it best
But if our heads should drop
So would the pride in our chests

Here is the beauty that we see
The beauty of looking down
Because I can only see you in me
And I'm hoping not to drown

Hear* my voice
Cascading like an avalanche
A landslide absent of choice
Ready to take a chance
See my reflection
Fading in the ripples
As I seek correction
That is expected to *******
Feel my heartbeat
Playing a rhythm for my soul
Which had long-succumbed to the heat
Of life's burning coals
Taste my pain
Voiced with a cry
As I tug at my chains
Offering my alibi
"I am alive"

Madness isn't a state of mind
It's a place
So, if you would be so kind
As to wear your frilly lace

And brush out your golden hair
Don't worry, I'll take you there
Grab my hand, let's go
To the land where you're never alone

Let me spin you as we walk
Don't mind the time
There are no clocks
Nor is there a chime

Down the hole we go
Falling faster by the second
Watch out, the ceiling's low
The exit has always beckoned

Yes, in this world you'll see
That there is no other like me
I'm a little mad
But it's here that I can be glad

My dear, sweet Alice
Be mindful of what you eat
Don't take the silver chalice
To stand tall upon your feet

Enter through the gate
And see things as you will
But it's getting very late
Come with me to the hill

Goodbye, my dear
There's no need to fear
For madness is a place
That rests forever in your grace

He looks at me, delighted, excited
His eyes are a glistening red
I look back, fearful, slighted
And hold on tight to my head

His voice is loud
It's unbearably silent
I'm always lost in the crowd
Of his painful, savage repent

Here I am, lost in the echoes
Of his always present being
I shut the eyes that refuse to close
To hide what I'm not seeing

I spread my arms to embrace the light
That color I cannot perceive
And hope, that with all my might
It's still alright to believe

We walk the day through concrete forests
Our heads held high in earnest unrest
Our hands are shaking, happiness restrained
Ah, in this world we feel so pained

Smile, boy, smile
Come, sing with us for a while
We'll dance when it rains
We'll sneak onto trains

Your story is the one being played
Don't struggle, it's how we are made
Our existence is everything
But a single pain is nothing

Laugh, girl, laugh
We'll help you run half
Life is a long road
We'll carry some of your load

You trip and you fall
Yet, you cry for none at all
You're strong, you're brave
But there's no one left to save

We walk the day across scarred dirt
Our feet that drag always hurt
But come, and please feel relieved
In this twisted world of make-believe

Looking up, I see a star
It grants me a wish and fades away
But, I know that it hadn't fallen far
For my wish was that it would always stay

Little light that shines so bright
I search for you every day
And though you are not within my sight
I remember that my wish was for you to stay

Come to me when midnight tolls
To the castle under the silver moon
Through the forest and over the knolls
I know that you will come to me soon

When morning came and I was alone
Without your light to guide me
I thought of the love that you would not loan
And wondered wherever you could be

Then when midnight tolled again
I saw a shining star
It winked at me through clouds and rain
And I knew that you could not be far

They wound me up and left me to play
So, there I sat, day after day
Playing songs for fortune's fools
In the room they filled with tools

But, my songs grew weary as time did tick
And not much later I began to feel sick
My melodies faltered, clashed, and fell
With every toll of the midnight bell

Then one day my tunes did fade
So, I cowered in a lonely shade
My heart had been forever broken
Darkness was my only token

Then one day I heard a creak
And in the room a boy did sneak
He approached me with such nimble steps
And in my soul raised a long-forgotten pep

Boy, you wound me up and left me to play
So, there I sat day after day
Playing songs for jailbird fools
In the room still filled with tools

But, my songs grew morbid as time did tick
And not much later did the feeling stick
So, when I heard that eerie knell
I continued to play, bound by a spell

Songs were things that had been forbade
But I continued to play from the place that I laid
Never a word had a useless tool spoken
Until the day that my spell had been broken

For, in the room did a young man peek
And whispered softly for me to speak
My lack of answer caused him to fret
So, further in he swiftly crept

Man, you wound me up and left me to play
So, there I sat day after day
Playing songs for bones and ghouls
In the room without the tools