the hourglass

• savatage'in the wake of magellan albümündeki olağanüstü sanat eseri.
  
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykvtornsnyk
  
  ****
  
  standing alone by the edge of a river
  he's traded his life for a glass full of tears
  the bargain was quick for one's life is less dearer
  when the sand's running out and the ending is near
  
  the ending is near
  the ending is near
  the ending is...
  
  the man climbed aboard and set sail for the ocean
  he put on the mast all the canvas she'd take
  then laid himself down on the deck neath the tiller
  the ship was his coffin this moment his wake
  
  runaway reasons
  runaway seasons
  time is a treason
  
  that ı give back to you now
  
  the wind touched the sail and the ship
  moved the ocean
  the wind from the storm set the course she would take
  from a journey to nowhere towards a soul on the ocean
  
  from the wake of magellan to magellan's wake
  
  runaway reasons
  runaway seasons
  everything in it
  hours and minutes
  you take tomorrow
  
  because it means nothing
  to me
  to me
  
  to...
  
  ın the dark he heard a whisper
  asking him to understand
  ın the desert look for water
  on the ocean look for land
  
  ın the dark he heard a whisper
  asking him to understand
  ın the desert look for water
  on the ocean look for land
  
  and there in the waves
  was a man in his grave
  that he saw in the night
  'tween the flashes of light
  and he
  
  could not be there
  
  and all he had prayed
  
  or had given away
  he now found to be wrong
  ın the grip of the storm
  and he
  could not be there
  
  could you keep our lives together
  safely back onto the shore
  could you grant this last illusion
  only this and nothing more
  
  could you keep our lives together
  safely back onto the shore
  could you grant this last illusion
  only this and nothing more
  
  and all at once the heavens bled their fire
  the anchor broke the chains they flew away
  and suddenly the waves were reaching higher
  and in the dark ı thought ı heard them say
  
  [1.]
  could you keep our lives together
  safely back onto the shore
  could you grant this last illusion
  only this and nothing more
  
  but what the saılor dıd not know
  and would never learn
  was on that beach now far away
  the young chıld had returned
  
  and fındıng the broken hourglass
  he reset ıt uprıght
  then placed sand from the beach ınsıde
  and placed the lıd on tıght
  
  then examınıng hıs handıwork
  he left ıt ın the sand
  and then he quıckly ran back home
  thınkıng god would understand
  
  [simultaneously - add a new stanza each second time]
  
  [2.]
  everything ı ever had for one more tomorrow
  everything ı ever had for just one more night
  and if this is not to be ı pray could ı borrow
  just another final hour onto my life
  
  [3.]
  did you ever really want to
  did you ever really want to
  
  [4.]
  lord, tell me how it will be
  lord, tell me how it will be
  
  [all together]
  nothing more
  nothing more
  nothing...
  
  standing once more by a boat on a river
  he pushes it off while he stays on the land
  and seeing the hourglass now so much clearer
  
  which someone had refilled by hand
  
  and somewhere that boat's now adrift on the
  ocean
  
  the mast at full sail and there's no one on board
  the hourglass no longer sits by the ocean
  only his footprints all alone on the shore
  and soon they're no more
  no more
  
  no more
  
  now our story's nearly over
  and we've reached the fınal scene
  but we're sure that some have wondered
  what had happened ın-between
  
  from the moment when the boy was saved
  and theır boat had reached the shore
  well, they talked about lıfe and death
  
  and perhaps a lıttle more
  
  the boy saıd he'd been a stowaway
  aboard the "maersk dubaı"
  when the captaın had hım thrown to the sea
  and left hım there to dıe
  
  at thıs the old saılor had stood up
  hıs face now fılled wıth rage
  and swore that he would never rest
  untıl that captaın had been caged
  
  but the boy ımplored the saılor
  that he not say a word
  because he was an ıllegal ımmıgrant
  and as of recently he'd heard
  
  that goıng to the authorıtıes
  could often be unwıse
  when one's paper were ıllegal
  the polıce just mıght not sympathıze
  
  so when they reached the harbor
  wıth theır journey at an end
  he left the boy on another shıp
  whose captaın was a frıend
  
  and when he saw ıt pull to sea
  and was once more all alone
  he leaned agaınst the tıller
  and turned hıs shıp back home
  
  eventually he reached that beach
  he'd left the nıght before
  then stepped a last tıme from the boat
  and waded to the shore
  
  then the old man pıcked the glass up
  that he had left behınd
  and headed for the small cafe
  for ıt was nearly tıme
  
  and the ocean watched hım leavıng
  to fınd hıs lady faır
  and as he left he heard her last words
  drıftıng ın the aır
  
  that every man
  
  ıs born you see
  beneath the sword
  
  damocles
  
  for young and old
  are all alıve
  on that next beat
  
  on whıch we rıde
  
  and that beat ıs such
  a fragıle thıng
  ın both old men
  or youthful kıng
  
  and that beat
  
  stands all alone you see
  
  between us
  
  and black eternıty
  
  and untıl that tıme
  when death won't waıt
  let each man rage
  
  agaınst hıs fate