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lyrics

My whole life I've spent as a student of love
It's amazing how much ground you can cover
Not looking back, and not looking above
Just putting one foot in front of the other

I've toiled and I've pondered each lesson in turn
Reminded myself I'd live without it
But when you told me to choose the next lesson I learn
I had to sit down in the shower about it

Love, I implore you
Love, I revere you
Love, I adore you
But I don't fear you

I orate, I dance, I nominate myself
To judge the fitness of reason
You level my stance, you say, prostrate thyself
only witness the season

The harsh knife of winter, the cool balm of spring
The sweat and stench of summer's garden
But none so majestic as when life salutes death
The color and crackle of autumn

What formula love? At best, it's clear you
Are neither solution nor solvent.
Love, I adore you, but I've never feared you
Maybe that's my problem

I would plead, I would pray, I would pay just to get it
In writing, that promise you gave
Whether tender or wise, child, never forget it:
Love is anything but safe

Love, I implore you
Love, I revere you
Love, I adore you
But I don't fear you

Should I summon the storm? The rain and the thunder
of judgment? Perish the thought
I pick this ruin of pain and of wonder
And cherish my queer broken heart

Each morning my burden the same as before
To shoulder this boulder up the hill
And each day I say I couldn't love you any more
When we both know full well I will

credits

from In The Dark (Awake Of Course​)​, Vol. 2, released October 18, 2023
Amina Shareef Ali: vocals, acoustic guitar
Jay Thompson: vocals
Guy Brown: electric guitar
Erika Oba: organ
Kevin Goldberg: bass
Brendan Getzell: drums

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Amina Shareef Ali Oakland, California

Based in Oakland, California, Amina Shareef Ali performs songs of love and struggle, of pain and wonder, of loss and redemption. Lyrics by turns poignant and sardonic are set against a backdrop of American music both traditional and modern, from folk to punk to country to jazz to rock and roll. ... more

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