She's afraid to go downstairs,
Cuz he'll be waiting for her down there,
But she needs to do the dishes...
The dishes she'll wash won't be her own;
She'll scrub and dry while her stomach groans:
She was punished from the table...
Instead her meal was a bar of soap,
Fed to her when she began to grope
That she was tired of macaroni and cheese...
For three months straight that was dinner;
She ate less and so grew thinner,
But she's hungry for more than food...
She longs for love inside a simple smile:
She dreams of being a golden child...
A fairy-tale hope of a pumpkin carriage ride
With a charming prince descended from the sky;
They'll fly away and last forever past midnightâ
A kiss in the morning and a kiss goodnight...
And a million billion in between.
She stares at the grass through a window pane;
It's been so long since she played that game
Where she ran around in circles...
She came inside one stormy day
And saw her mother's smile fade away
From powdering her nose with white dust...
The hand once gentle, full of grace
Was hard as brick against her face,
And it never stopped striking...
To cry is now a sin
Cuz it makes her strike again
And again and again...
She longs for love inside a simple smile:
She dreams of being a golden child...
A glass slipper frolic beside a clear blue lake,
Wearing a dress that matches her birthday cake;
Inside a world where no one fightsâ
A hug in the morning and a hug goodnight...
And a million billion in between.
At night she prays the Lord will take
Her soul cuz death is the only grace she knows,
That she will not awaken to her mother's hand
Across her cheek, her father's beercans thrown at her feet;
O, that she can move into another girl's shoes,
Ones that have no holes in their soles [souls],
That she can finally receive embraces
For every tear that streams off her face...
O, run girl run, and be not afraid to tell someone
Of the black bruise on your leg and the red stripes on your back;
O, be not afraid and escapeâ
Escape and find your pumpkin carriage and holeless glass slipper...
She's afraid to go downstairs,
Cuz he'll be waiting for her down there,
But she needs to do the dishes.