Ballad for Leaving Lyrics

I was a stone in the dry lake bed
That a furious and tumbling river once fed
Like an apostle of Jesus with his hands on my head
Or another horse dead from exhaustion

The rings on your fingers, the rings on your arms
The hoops in your ear or your necklace of charms
Or the long lifelines that are traced in your palms
Are an elegant tale of misfortune

A reasonable thing would be to just walk away
Empty your pockets and call it a day
If you've got religion, then you know how to pray
And if you don't, you can always try thinking

That was a thought that we fastened with wire
Bound it with cloth and placed in the fire
That even the lowest river has a source somewhere higher
A thousand miles from the ocean

There is a fear that will empty your heart
And devils that will fool you for taking it apart
And you'll think it's the end, but it's only the start
Of a crippling and useless emotion

The town that you wound up in won't know your name
A circle of hungry wolves eying your claim
Wearing your love like a proud lion's mane
Wondering, "What the hell was I thinking?"

You're going out bravely you're going out bad
With your head full of happy and your heart full of sad
And all of the weapons you never realized you had
Are piled up and buried behind you

Maybe you'll lose one, maybe you'll win
Maybe your armor is perilously thin
Or your endless and shameful appearance of sin
Is only there to remind you

If it wasn't so dark, if it wasn't so late
I'd be much more inclined to acknowledge my fate
It's hard to accept it, but it's harder to hate
Maybe it's just my heart sinking