you used to feel like a smoker
shivering in the cold
waiting outside the bar
til the opener's over
but now you feel like a drinker
twenty days off the sauce
down at the liquor store
trying to call your sponsor
you used to feel like the forest fire burning
but now you feel like a child
throwing tantrums for your turn
you used to sound like a prophet
and everyone wanted to know
how you could tell the truth
without losing that soft glow
but now you feel like a salesman
closing another deal
or some drunk ship captain
raging after the white whale
you used to feel like the forest fire burning
but now you feel like a child
throwing tantrums and then some
you used to feel like the prodigal returning
but now you hate what you've made
and you want to watch it burn
shivering in the cold
waiting outside the bar
til the opener's over
but now you feel like a drinker
twenty days off the sauce
down at the liquor store
trying to call your sponsor
you used to feel like the forest fire burning
but now you feel like a child
throwing tantrums for your turn
you used to sound like a prophet
and everyone wanted to know
how you could tell the truth
without losing that soft glow
but now you feel like a salesman
closing another deal
or some drunk ship captain
raging after the white whale
you used to feel like the forest fire burning
but now you feel like a child
throwing tantrums and then some
you used to feel like the prodigal returning
but now you hate what you've made
and you want to watch it burn