[Verse 1]
I buckle in my seatbelt and plug my headset in a chair
And to the music, I watch flight attendants move
They are pointing out the exits, but it looks more like a prayer
Or an ancient dance their bloodline reaches through

These planes are good for sifting through
The warriors from the men
I get time to sit and watch them for a while
You can see everywhere they're going
And everywhere they've been
In how they look out at the clouds each time they smile

[Chorus 1]
And I think 'maybe he's in town for someone's birthday
Or maybe he makes trouble everywhere
But as much he resists the conversation
Between the rivers and the freeways
He knows it's always there'

[Verse 2]
As the Northwest Passage sits somewhere below me as I sleep
I dream of captains and explorers eating boots
When I ask if I can join them, and they offer one to me
I wake up as my home comes into view
So I reach out down for my notebook to see what impressions could be spun
But it's just buildings and a million swimming pools
So I leaf back through the pages to see where I am from
Or for some crumbling map of what it's leading to

[Chorus 2]
And I find that the hero in this song that I am writing
Doesn't know he's just an image of myself
But as much he resists the conversation
Between the rivers and the freeways
He's somehow always asking them for help

[Instrumental Interlude]

[Bridge]
I want to make out all the signs I've been ignoring
How the trees reach for the sky or in the length of someone's hair
Cause when you don't know where you are going
Any road will take you there

[Chorus 3]
So maybe I'm in town for someone's birthday
Maybe I make trouble everywhere
But as much I resist the conversation
Between the rivers and the freeways
I know it's always there
I know it's always there
I know it's always there