I SOUND MY BARBARIC YAWP OVER THE ROOFTOPS OF THE WORLD.

Once upon a time there was a little girl
And once upon a time she loved to read
And she had a blanket that only covered her toes
And left her giggling in the night
The night that called out to her like a soaking wet fireman covered in yarn
And the stars screamed at her to take lots of pictures and bite her tongue in delight
But she didn't 'cause she was afraid of the night
'Cause she couldn't see what was inside.

Well, this girl, this girl who loved to read and ignored it when people told her to live her life
She fell in love with this boy
And this boy lived in the dark
And feared the light
And I swear on my life the only way they could meet was at dawn and dusk
When it was neither light nor dark
And the girl kicked pebbles
And the boy picked leaves 'cause he had nothing better to do
And they didn't talk much
And the girl tried to share her blanket
That only covered her toes
But it was too little for the both of them
So the boy turned it into a scarf
Because he loved to read too
And all the boy wore were pearls and sweaters 'cause that's all he could afford
And when the night came he ran screaming through the dark
And the girl was left to her books.

But then one day when the sun came and the boy scurried to his cave
The girl thought
I'm not doing this anymore
And the girl filled a suitcase full of rags
And she said goodbye to the silent coyote outside her window
And kissed goodbye the quiet coyote under her bed
And left a note for her dear mother who kept the time all day
And she went to find her boy.

And then she found him in his cave and she told him
I will live in the night with you
And he smiled and his mouth was full of pearly whites
And he still had all his baby teeth
And he built her a cushion of bluejay feathers
For her to sit on.

And then the night came
And the stars burst screaming down
And they carried away the girl who loved to read
And taught her how to write poetry
And left the boy alone.

And there he sits still
His hair as red as a bicycle
Sitting on a cushion of bluejay feathers
And fearing the light.