Lletres: Sufjan Stevens. The Avalanche: Outtakes & Extras from Illinois Album. Pittsfield.

I'm not afraid of you now, I know
So I climbed down from the bunk beds this low
I can talk back to you now, I know
From a few things I learned from this TV show

You can work late till midnight, we don't care
We can fix our own meals, we can wash our own hair
I go to school before sunrise, in the cold
And I pulled the alarm and I kicked up the salad bowls

Since that time we meant to say much
Unsaid things begin to change
After school we shoveled through the snow
Drive upstate in silence in the cold

You can remind me of it that I was lazy and tired
You can work all your life as I'm not afraid of you anymore

If I loved you a long time, I don't know
If I can't recall the last time you told me so
Here in this house in Pittsfield
The ghost of our grandmother works at the sewing machine post

Hiding the bills in the kitchen on the floor
And my sister lost her best friend in the Persian Gulf War
There was a flood in the bathroom last May
And you kicked at the pipes when it rattled, oh the river it made

Stand there, tell me that I'm of no use
Things unspoken break us if we share
There's still time to wash the kitchen floor
On your knees, at the sink once more

You can remind me that I was tired
You can work late and give yourself up
Now that I'm older, wiser, and working less
I don't regret having left the place a mess

You can remind me that I was lazy and tired
You can recall your life as I'm not afraid of you anymore
Anymore