Songs:
-But Still
-You Are Not Alone
-The Wizard's a Fake
-Survive
-Through This Mighty Rain (I Love You Beautifully)
-What Are You Thinking?
-Anyone Would (Diana's Song)
-Waiting in the Wings
-The Feel of Solid Ground
-Take Cover from Me
But Still
I watch it all unravel.
So far from when I thought
I could have all--
But still
But still
I will somehow get by.
I'll still fly though they've clipped my wings
And as they all watch me from below
I'll be the bluebird who still sings
And I'll dip to escape the stones that they throw.
Thing is, how do I know where to begin
When all I know is black and blue?
The only way I win
Is to keep my sadness far from you.
You tried, you held me there
To keep me from coming undone.
But I didn't care.
I just wanted to run.
But still
But still
I'll look up to the sky.
I'll sit atop the tree whose bark is torn
And think maybe I can plan ahead.
I'll rest till I'm no longer worn out
And maybe I can stay...
And beat back the sorrow
That I know always comes from love.
I'll stay and see about tomorrow
While the sun keeps watch from above.
But still, thing is, it's just when I find hope in my heart
That I always crack wide open, always fall apart.
Imagine the rope and the bullet and knife and pills
'Cause those are the only ways to forget
That what I thought was a light
Was the fire years ago
From all the bridges I burned,
And the fire far ahead that's taking all I have
And could have earned.
I wish that there's one person who made it
Across the river and I try to...
Keep it all even in my head
As my mind nears high tide.
It's like I'm dead inside.
I'm not here, yet I still collide.
How in the world can I collide with nothing?!
So, there must be something
Or someone I can see
Who can see a way out
Who can help them see me
Who can share some knowledge and some courage
Share the price that I pay
So that by the end of, the end of the day,
I'll be able to stay.
Lisa Kasamoto | Sept. 14, 2018
You Are Not Alone
Fire in my brain, too hot to sleep.
Also arctic pain, too frozen to weep.
Can anyone say this is living
When it’s hope that’s unforgiving?
They will take this pound of my flesh
But not this dead weight sadness in my chest
And not this ton of concrete in my brain.
There’s not an ounce of mercy in pain.
We deserve to be taken seriously.
Around that curve, they’ll see us, free.
Chorus:
It’s okay to talk about all of it.
What you feel is legitimate.
You’re sad down to the bone
But, you are not alone.
It’s not that you’re too sensitive.
It’s the only way you know to live.
So, let yourself be known.
You are not alone.
You are not alone.
You are not alone.
You are not alone.
You’re not alone.
Can my sins be cast to the past?
Can there be vertical movement at last?
From crosses and caves of hurt
Comes the surprising arising from dirt.
We deserve to be taken seriously.
Around that curve, they’ll see us, free.
Chorus:
It’s okay to talk about all of it.
What you feel is legitimate.
Through every stick and stone
You are not alone.
It’s not that you’re too sensitive.
It’s the only way you know to live.
Even if you’re on your own
You are not alone. (You are not alone)
You are not alone. (You are not alone)
Bridge:
Feel my heart on your
Sleeve and believe
And breathe out all sorrow.
I’ll see you in the morning
Of someday’s tomorrow.
I promise you, I promise you.
Hold tight and say…
Hold fast and say…
Hold on and say…
“This is real
This is real
This is real
This is--
This is real...”
Chorus:
“…as real as your pain is to you.
I bleed the same way that you do.
Now that the truth is known
I am not alone.”
“It’s not that I’m too sensitive
It’s the only way I know to live
So, I’ll let myself be known
’Cause I am not alone.”
“It’s okay to talk about all of it.
I am not alone. (You are not alone)
What I feel is legitimate.
I am not alone.
I am not alone”
“I’m not alone.”
Lisa Kasamoto | Aug. 7, 2018
The Wizard’s a Fake
“It must be even,” she said
As her mind waxed high tide.
She will unravel in red
As the blues of her room collide.*
Gladness cannot be bought
Or sown from thin air.
Yet she stitches the thought
And sews what isn’t there.*
You may say you have knowledge
And you know the way
But I have all the courage
To know the cure at the end of the day.
Chorus:
You say I’ll see a way out of this
But you won’t admit that this is hit or miss.
What you miss is I’m the one bluebird
Who can’t fly over the rainbow.
I always say, “There’s no mercy in the pain.”
You say, “Don’t you see there’s always sun with the rain?”
What you don’t see and what you’ve never heard
Is I can’t fly over the rainbow.
Anyone would do
The same thing to get home that I showed to you.
“I take no prisoners here,”
says this mighty Sorrow.
“I take no prisoners now.
It’s just a myth, this tomorrow.”*
You may say you have knowledge
And you know the way
But I have all the courage
To pay the price that I must pay.
Chorus:
You say I’ll see a way out of this
But you won’t admit that this is hit or miss.
What you miss is I’m the one bluebird
Who can’t fly over the rainbow.
I always say, “There’s no mercy in the pain.”
You say, “Don’t you see there’s always sun with the rain?”
What you don’t see and what you’ve never heard
Is I can’t fly over the rainbow.
Anyone would do
The same thing to get home--
Bridge:
When you scream in the back ward and nobody cares
Did you really scream? Were you ever even there?
(x4)
Was I ever even there?
Was I ever even there?
I’m in the middle of nowhere
Will you ever see me there?
Chorus:
You say I’ll see a way out of this
But you won’t admit that this is hit or miss.
What you miss is I’m the one bluebird
Who can’t fly over the rainbow.
I always say, “There’s no mercy in the pain.”
You say, “Don’t you see there’s always sun with the rain?”
What you don’t see and what you’ve never heard
Is I can’t fly over the rainbow.
Anyone would make
The same decision I made to cure the ache.
Can anybody save me?
Save me? Save me! No-oh! Oh-oh.
*Paula Vogel/Civil War Christmas
Lisa Kasamoto | Aug. 4, 2018
Survive
Days of listening, days of looking,
In what row do I sit now?
Crossed the tape line, can I go back?
There’s so much we could not know.*
I move forward, trusting only
In the forward movement here.
Chorus:
Clear as the glint from the last row,
I know I’ve come out of this room
With something new
Called “me and you."
They say to patch all of the holes,
Seal all the cracks, but you said “No,
That’s how the light gets in.”**
On this journey, page to stage,
Being happy just to be…
Six dimensions, multi-levels
Make a home we all can see.
Magic-makers, tablet-carvers
Form a movement we can hear.
Chorus:
Clear as the glint from the last row,
I know I’ve come out of this show
With something new
Called “me and you.”
They say to patch all of the holes,
Seal all the cracks, but now I know,
“That’s how the light gets in.
How the light gets in.”
Bridge:
We hurt, hurt, hurt
But we’ve been told the lie
That we shouldn’t cry.
But we cry, cry, cry.
We’ve seen our children die.
Still, there’s light from the tears in our eyes.
Chorus:
Clear as the glint from the last row,
I know I’ve come out of this show
With something new
Called “me and you."
They say to patch all of the holes,
Seal all the cracks, but don’t they know?
“That’s how the light gets in,
How the light gets in,
How the light gets in.”
*Next to Normal/“How Could I Ever Forget?”
**Leonard Cohen/“Anthem”
Lisa Kasamoto | Sept. 21, 2017
Through This Mighty Rain (I Love You Beautifully)
As bitter rocks fly, my heart in your mind’s eye
Creaks open more and more.
You found in me, ancient provisions.
I lay peace outside your door.
And I’ll be the whisper in your loud wail.
I’ll be the blue of your exhale.
I’ll be at the end of your sad start
Holdin’ the right angle of your dear heart.
Chorus:
I can’t know the nights you weep, days you sleep.
I can’t know the price you’ve allowed.
I can’t see how you leap, how deep, but
I’ll always see you press on, somehow unbowed.
True blues, a rocket to the moon,
Tried and true, mountain to sea.
Socked in by friendship, golden dimensions,
A bank of integrity.
And I’ll be the slowest beat of your ache,
A lullaby for your wide awake.
I’ll be the feather in the load that you bear
And the walls of the hallway out of your nightmare.
Chorus:
I can’t know the nights you weep, days you sleep.
I can’t know the price you’ve allowed.
I can’t see how you leap, how deep, but
I’ll always see you press on, somehow unbowed.
Bridge:
And I’m watchin’ the sun go
And wishin’ to end your blue pain.
All I can do though
Is witness you through your blue-lit window pane.
Chorus
I can’t know the nights you weep, days you sleep.
I can’t know the price you’ve allowed.
I can’t see how you leap, how deep, but
I’ll always see you press on, somehow unbowed.
You keep on, always standing proud.
Lisa Kasamoto | Feb. 24, 2017
What Are You Thinking?
Blue eyes and the tip of a smile
My arms reach to catch your laugh
But you’re just a photograph
You’ve been gone; it’s been quite a while
My mind reaches to touch your hand
To enter your distant, silent land
Are you out of air or living through your tears?
You walk towards a brilliant end point
You blaze in yellows, greens, and reds
But paint with a knife, you’re ripped to shreds
Truth beats in every cell, nerve, and joint
No choice but to cover it in blue
Ceding everything you knew
And though you’re not wrong
The downbeats are much too strong
Chorus:
To kiss the one that you miss
Sometimes you seek the abyss
The dark dancer says the answer is this:
Just make the mistake.
I thought, I thought that you’d be afraid
But now on the other side of death
You wrote you’ll take your first real breath
So near, you hear him; you couldn’t have stayed
No one but you could know the rest
And find the place where grief confessed
Are you out of air or living your best years?
Chorus:
To kiss the one that you miss
Sometimes you seek the abyss
The dark dancer says the answer–
Dark dancer says the an–
Bridge:
I thought I’d write, ask you how your days are going
But I held back, our past has me knowing that
To write for you, not about you, is the way to go
Chorus:
To kiss the one that you miss
Sometimes you seek the abyss
The dark dancer says the answer–
Dark dancer says the answer is this:
Just make the mistake
Make the mistake.
Lisa Kasamoto | Feb. 9, 2011
Anyone Would (Diana’s Song)
The first notes play as you reflect below the concrete streets
But at first, I don’t connect them as I should.
Then, you say “shoes and records” and like a shotgun blast, I see
That you’re gonna take us along – it’s understood.
And I can’t stop what I’m hearing, but my gaze falls away,
So because I’m looking down, I see your tears bounce off the stage
Chorus 1:
And my world stops and my mouth drops
And I look up from the stage.
But there’s no trace there on your face there
’Cause they fell as one cascade
Made of everything that you sing tonight
And I’d trade them in, if that would be alright.
In these parts when heart leaves fall, they always land face down
And then scatter as they fade, yellow to brown.
Many beginnings state to state, but just one final date
And the past scatters itself on the gravestone.
And though we’re not of the same name or number, or of the same bones,
You share the drive with me, so maybe you won’t have to arrive alone.
Chorus 2:
Still, if I could, then I would
Have somehow made it so they stayed
Were it my place to replace
Any notes that life has played.
I wanna know you, laugh at your jokes tonight,
So I’d trade your tears, if that would be alright
’Cause I’d trade them in for the morning light.
Lisa Kasamoto | Mar. 9, 2017
Waiting in the Wings
When the evening sky’s a cobalt blue
And the eastern river breezes cue
I will always, always think of you
As you take wing, my friend.
When you stepped into this made-up story
You reflected back my every worry
And validated all my flights to glory
And my melted wings.
You were always, always meant to sing
And make us hear and see and feel.
I began taking in everything.
Line by line, my soul began to heal.
When you stepped into my real life tale
You weren’t fazed by all that ailed me
And your patience never failed me
So I waited in the wings.
The role of a lifetime for you, you see,
Meant a once-in-a-lifetime chance for me
So right here, I will always be
Waiting in the wings.
I was always, always meant to write
and I’ve learned that it can save.
You read it all, of me at my height
and in my stillest, lightless cave.
So, it doesn’t matter if the weather’s fair
Or a storm is crackling in the air
I will never, never not be there
Waiting in the wings.
What a new leaf is to the frozen rot
What a laugh is to the somber soul
What a hug is to a shattered thought:
In my musical, your starring role.
Day after day, and fray after fray
Tear after tear, gray after gray
I’ll stay and stay and stay and stay and stay
Waiting in the wings
Right here in the wings.
Lisa Kasamoto | Mar. 23, 2017
The Feel of Solid Ground
The morning ground to a halt here,
so I could show you inside.
No one is at fault here.
This is just the other side.
You don’t need to protect me.
I am awake and aware.
You don’t need to take care of me.
I just need to know you care.
Chorus:
Don’t catch me.
I’m not falling.
Don’t speak for me.
I’m not calling you.
I know what’s real,
each sight and sound,
and I know the feel
of solid ground.
All you do is grounded
in love and light, I know.
But the alarm you sounded
won’t ever be the way to go.
When you stop me and warn
that a storm is on its way,
you conjure up a thorn
that will keep this rose at bay.
Chorus:
So, don’t catch me.
I’m not falling.
Don’t speak for me.
I’m not calling you.
I know what’s real,
each sight and sound,
and I know the feel
of solid ground
’cause I am the rose
and I am the tree
and I am the cliffside–
It’s not me on the edge you see.
Bridge:
It’s my morning, it’s my day.
It’s my fight for every word I say.
And it’s my night and it is my light
on the road to where I’ll be alright.
My feet are on the ground here.
There’s nothing dark or wild.
There’s no crash to fear here.
I’m not unsteady like a child.
Chorus:
So, don’t catch me.
I’m not falling.
Don’t speak for me.
I’m not calling you.
Oh, I’m not lost,
don’t need to be found.
I know the cost
of my solid ground
’cause I am the rose
and I am the tree
and I am the cliffside–
It’s not me on the limb you see
’cause I am the rose
and I am the tree
and I am the cliffside–
It’s not me on the edge you see.
Lisa Kasamoto | Feb. 18, 2017
Take Cover from Me
Hey, Jess, my love,
sit with me a bit.
Dry your feet, dry your eyes
from this last storm.
Look out there.
See the clear patch?
I’ve got to try to explain that I’m giving that to you,
to you.
Chorus:
Take cover from me.
Do not fear, my dear heart,
as I start to depart.
I’m not the lover for you.
Take cover from me.
Please take care, my best friend.
All your tears will end ’round this bend,
you will mend.
Jess, it’s better this way,
this reprieve.
Let me leave and then, safe, you will be.
Take cover from me.
Jess, I know we said–
We read our vows–
Yes, it’s wrong, but time stands to win this time.
I’m spinning,
Jess, I’m spinning out of control.
You’ve got to break free,
yes, from me.
Chorus:
Keep keepin’ on, li’l bit,
though what’s lit takes a hit.
I’m not the lover for you.
Take cover from me.
Chin up, precious one.
Stay warm ’cause my sun’s on the run,
till there’s none
left for you - that’s not fair.
Find the glow.
Let me go and then, safe, you will be.
Take cover from me.
Bridge:
I know this is rough, this is tough here,
but I’m telling you, you won’t be alone
’cause you’re made of the stuff of roses,
the thorns, your backbone.
And you’ll find another–
take cover.
Chorus:
Do not fear, my dear heart,
as I start to depart.
I’m not the lover for you.
Take cover from me.
Please take care, my best friend.
All your tears will end ’round this bend,
you will mend.
Jess, it’s better, Jess–
Keep keepin’ on, you’ll be free!
Take cover from me.
Just keep my heart on your sleeve
and take your tears and your fears
and believe.
Jess, my love, hear this song.
I’m not wrong.
Won’t be long till you will see
And you’ll recover from me.
Lisa Kasamoto | Feb. 24, 2011
Please copy/save content from this website only with written permission.
Thank you. Contact me here.
Copyright © 2023 Lisa Y. Kasamoto