Autobiographia Literaria

Sometimes I don't understand
how people came across the concept of "fun";
it was probably
only abstracted as an opposite to sadness.

Eu Sou do Tamanho do que Vejo

Da minha aldeia veio quanto da terra se pode ver no Universo...
Por isso a minha aldeia é tão grande como outra terra qualquer
Porque eu sou do tamanho do que vejo
E não, do tamanho da minha altura...
Nas cidades a vida é mais pequena
Que aqui na minha casa no cimo deste outeiro.

Na cidade as grandes casas fecham a vista à chave,
Escondem o horizonte, empurram o nosso olhar para longe de todo o céu,
Tornam-nos pequenos porque nos tiram o que os nossos olhos nos podem dar,
E tornam-nos pobres porque a nossa única riqueza é ver.

I Am the Size of What I See

From my village I can see as much of the earth as it can be seen in the Universe...
That’s why my village is as big as any other land
Because I am the size of what I see
And not the size of my height...
In cities life is smaller
Than here in my house on top of this hill.

In the city the big houses lock the view away,
They hide the horizon, push our gaze away from the whole sky,
They make us small because they take away what our eyes can give us,
And they make us poor because our only wealth is seeing.

Because my songs are brief,
People think I hoarded words.
I have spared nothing in my songs.
There is nothing I can add.
Unlike a fish, my soul swims without gills.
I sing on one breath.

When you pass through the fire, you pass through humble
You pass through a maze of self doubt
When you pass through humble, the lights can blind you
Some people never figure that out
You pass through arrogance, you pass through hurt
You pass through an ever present past
And it's best not to wait for luck to save you
Pass through the fire to the light
Pass through the fire to the light
Pass through the fire to the light
It's best not to wait for luck to save you
Pass through the fire to the light

As you pass through the fire, your right hand waving
There are things you have to throw out
That caustic dread inside your head
Will never help you out
You have to be very strong, 'cause you'll start from zero
Over and over again
And as the smoke clears, there's an all consuming fire
Lyin' straight ahead
Lyin' straight ahead
Lyin' straight ahead
As the smoke clears there's an all consuming fire
Lyin' straight ahead

They say no one person can do it all
But you want to in your head
But you can't be Shakespeare and you can't be Joyce
So what is left instead?
You're stuck with yourself and a rage that can hurt you
You have to start at the beginning again
And just this moment this wonderful fire
Started up again

When you pass through humble, when you pass through sickly
When you pass through, I'm better than you all
When you pass through anger and self deprecation
And have the strength to acknowledge it all
When the past makes you laugh and you can savor the magic
That let you survive your own war
You find that that fire is passion
And there's a door up ahead, not a wall

As you pass through fire, as you pass through fire
Tryin' to remember it's name
When you pass through fire lickin' at your lips
You cannot remain the same
And if the building's burning, move towards that door
But don't put the flames out
There's a bit of magic in everything
And then some loss to even things out
Some loss to even things out
Some loss to even things out
There's a bit of magic in everything
And then some loss to even things out