Lyrics

Tonight the camera is not a mirror
It is a stitch

Streetlights tilt awake to watch us kindly
Heart shaped dust lifts shines then lets go
Cobblestones show stitched seams underfoot
Like the town repaired the roads we broke
We come in coats full of long winters
Buttons dull as pennies in a drawer
No one asks us to look younger
They only ask us to stand a little more

Breathe in together
Breathe out slow
Here even silence
Has somewhere to go

Blink then be brave
Blink then be brave
Hold still let the light behave
A photo cannot stop time
But it can stop you from calling yourself alone
Blink then be brave
And come back home

In the square they pass blank envelopes around
Not empty just waiting to begin
A basket full of we were here
For every shaky hand every softened grin
Steam from cups becomes one ribbon low
Connecting us without a vow
Breath in the cold syncs into one rhythm
Like the town is teaching now
Our shadows touch before our fingers do
Soft glowing lines sew them into a seam
And for a second every doorway glows
The same warm heart light in the same dream

If your smile arrives late
We will wait
We learned that from the years

Blink then be brave
Blink then be brave
Hold still let the light behave
If your name feels thin tonight
Let the town say it back to you in gold
Blink then be brave
You are not too old

An old photographer with round goggles lifts the frame
The lens warms up like the town’s small sun
He half presses
Every lantern reflection shows a different time of day
Morning somewhere
Summer somewhere
But the street stays dusk
So nobody runs away
He full presses
A camera flash becomes a faint stitched heart in the air
Then falls like soft dust on sleeves and hair
And here is the line I keep my Valentine
We were not posing
We were holding the line

Blink then be brave
Blink then be brave
Hold still let the light behave
When the world gets sharp and fast
We keep it soft in this unusual town
Blink then be brave
You are not late
You are now

Mm mm blink then be brave
Mm mm come back home