LEONARD COHEN,,,A thousand kisses deep

The ponies run, the girls are young,
The odds are there to beat.
You win a while, and then it's done —
Your little winning streak.
And summoned now to deal
With your invincible defeat,
You live your life as if it's real,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.

I'm turning tricks, I'm getting fixed,
I'm back on Boogie Street.
You lose your grip, and then you slip
Into the Masterpiece.
And maybe I had miles to drive,
And promises to keep:
You ditch it all to stay alive,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.

And sometimes when the night is slow,
The wretched and the meek,
We gather up our hearts and go,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.

Confined to sex, we pressed against
The limits of the sea:
I saw there were no oceans left
For scavengers like me.
I made it to the forward deck
I blessed our remnant fleet —
And then consented to be wrecked,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.

I'm turning tricks, I'm getting fixed,
I'm back on Boogie Street.
I guess they won't exchange the gifts
That you were meant to keep.
And quiet is the thought of you
The file on you complete,
Except what we forgot to do,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.

And sometimes when the night is slow,
The wretched and the meek,
We gather up our hearts and go,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.

The ponies run, the girls are young,
The odds are there to beat.
You win a while, and then it's done —
Your little winning streak.
And summoned now to deal
With your invincible defeat,
You live your life as if it's real,



You came to me this mornomg
And you handled me like meat,
You'd have to be a man to know
How good that feels, how sweet,
My mirrored twin, my next of kin,
I've know you in my sleep,
And who but you would take me in,
A thousand kisses deep.

I loved you when you opened
Like a lily to the heat.
You see, I'm just another snowman,
Standing in the rain and sleet,
Who loved you with his frozen love
His second hand physique,
With all he is and all he was,
A thousand kisses deep.

I know you had to lie to me,
I know you had to cheat,
To pose all hot and high
Behind the veils of sheer deceit,
Our perfect Porn Aristocrat
So elegant and cheap,
I'm old but, I'm still into that,
A thousand kisses deep.

I'm Good at Love, I'm Good at Hate,
It's in between I freeze.
I've been working out, but it's to late,
It's been too late for years.
But you look good, You really do,
They love you on the street,
If I could move I'd kneel for you,
A thousand kisses deep.

And I'm still working with the wine,
Still dancing cheek to cheek,
The band is playing "Auld Lang Syne" —
But the heart will not retreat.
I ran with Diz, I sang with Ray,
I never had their sweep,
But once or twice they let me play,
A thousand kisses deep.

The Autumn moved across your skin,
Got something in my eye a light
That doesn't need to live
And doesn't need to die.
A riddle in the book of love
Obscure and obsolete
To witness here in time and blood,
A thousand kisses deep.

I loved you when you opened
Like a lily to the heat.
You see, I'm just another snowman
Standing in the rain and sleet,
Who loved you with his frozen love,
His second hand physique,
With all he is and all he was,
A thousand kisses deep.

Don't matter if the road is long,
Don't matter if it's steep,
Don't matter if the moon goes out,
And the darkness in complete.
Don't matter if we loose our way,
It's written that we'll meet.
At least, that's what I heard you say,
A thousand kisses deep.

Well, that's my story.
I admit it's broken and it's bleak,
But all the twisted peaces fit,
A thousand kisses deep.


(Dublin; July 20, 2009)