LYRICS

IRON FINGER

Fog rolled in thick near the laurel gap, Stole the trail right off the map. You couldn't see your boots, let alone the way, Just a wall of white in a world of gray. But I didn't panic, and I didn't stir, I just sat where the landmarks used to be.

I pulled out a nail, just rusted iron and grit, And an old silk scrap for to kindle it. I stroked that metal in a one-way line, Wakin' up the spirit in the iron spine. Like pettin' a dog 'til his hackles rise, I was findin' the truth with my blinkered eyes.

It’s the pull of the world, boys. The big heart of the earth talkin' to the steel. A rusted nail and a scrap of cloth, Turnin' a mystery back into a map.

I found a stone cup filled with mountain rain, Still as a mirror, quiet as a vein. I floated a leaf like a green little boat, And I let that iron finger settle and float. She shivered once, then she spun around, And pointed to the North where the cold is found.

I didn't need a sun or a break in the mist, I had the whole world's heart in my calloused fist. I tucked that nail back in its silken bed, And walked the path that the metal led. The fog don't matter when you know what’s true, And the earth is always talkin' back to you.

North is North. And I’m headin' home.