While You Were Sleeping
Elvis Perkins Lyrics

While you were sleeping your babies grew
You were unaware of the passing of time and were not able to watch your children grow up.

The stars shined and the shadows moved
The night continued on as you slept, with the stars shining and the shadows shifting gradually over the sleeping landscape.

Time flew the phone rang
Time continued to advance without you, marked by the ringing of a phone that went unanswered as you were sleeping.

There was a silence when the kitchen sang
Although the rest of the world continued to move and make noise, your kitchen sat in silence as its appliances and utensils hummed to themselves quietly.

Its songs competed like kids for space
The sound of various kitchen appliances making noise filled the quiet, with each sound competing for attention in a way that felt like children vying for space in a crowded room.

We stared for hours in our maker?s face
Despite being busy with the distractions of everyday life, we are always aware of the larger forces guiding our lives and spend time reflecting on our spiritual beliefs.

They gave us picks said "go mine the sun
We have been given lofty tasks that are impossible to achieve, even if they are presented as straightforward instructions.

While you were sleeping you tossed you turned
During your sleep, you were unsettled and restless, tossing and turning as you slept.

You rolled your eyes as the world burned
You were dismissive of the world's problems and did not believe that the issues being reported in the media were worth paying attention to.

The heavens fell the earth quaked
Despite your indifference, major events continued to happen in the world, including natural disasters that had significant impacts on people's lives.

I thought you must be but you weren't awake, no
Even though major events were occurring, you remained oblivious to them, continuing to sleep soundly.

You were dreaming you ignored the sun
In your dreams, you were not concerned with reality and were not responsive to the natural world around you, including the sun.

You grew your power garden for your little ones
You focused on building a source of power and stability for your dependents, creating a space where they could thrive and grow together.

And you found brides for them on Christmas Eve
You are very protective of your loved ones and are committed to ensuring they are able to find and establish meaningful relationships, even if it means orchestrating their romances yourself.

They hung young Cain from the Adam trees And danced uh oh
Your loved ones have struggled and faced difficult situations, even in the midst of your efforts to protect them, and the family as a whole has experienced significant strife.

While you were sleeping I tossed and I turned too
Even though you were sound asleep, your situation kept me up and worried throughout the night as I tossed and turned while trying to make sense of everything that was happening.

I closed my eyes but the future burned through
Despite my efforts to avert my gaze, I remained aware of the reality of the situation and the difficult future that was facing us all.

The planet turned a hair grey as I relived the day
I felt weighed down by the events of the past day and the weight of the future, with the reality of the situation causing a great deal of stress and anxiety.

While you were sleeping the money died
The economy has taken a significant hit and many people have lost their wealth and financial security in the wake of these difficult times.

Machines were harmless and the earth sighed
Technology and the modern world in general were relatively powerless as nature continued to assert itself in unexpected ways, bringing humanity back to its roots and creating a sense of humility and interconnectedness.

The wind you swept sound and gravity brought my love Around
The elements of the natural world continued to exert their power and influence, bringing people together in unexpected ways and creating a sense of interconnectedness and harmony that was lacking in the world before.

The oceans rose sang about decay
Nature continued to shift and change in a way that was both beautiful and unsettling, with the elements merging together to create a sense of entropy and decay that was both haunting and gorgeous.

The witches flew and the mermaids stayed
The world was filled with magical creatures that seemed to hint at the underlying imagination and vitality of life, even amidst the chaos and decay that was all around.

Full of dreams you overslept
You were caught up in the dreams of your life and were not able to be present and aware of the bigger picture and the impact of your actions on others around you.

In keeping with the quiet through the walls I crept
Although I was worried and stressed, I kept my feelings to myself and moved quietly through the world, trying to do what I could to make things better and avoid causing any problems.

I walked on tip-toes sent darkness swirling over all
Even though I was trying to be quiet and reserved, my feelings and thoughts were strong and powerful, creating turbulent emotions that swirled around me in the darkness of the night.

The kitchen
Despite all of the changes and the chaos that was happening in the larger world, the kitchen remained a stable source of comfort and familiarity.

In the early morning
As the night slowly faded away and the sun began to rise, there was a sense of newness and possibility in the air.

I'll never catch up to you who sleep so sound
Even though I'm trying my best to stay alert and be aware of the situation at all times, you are able to sleep soundly without any worries or concerns.

My yawns are useless my heart beats too loud
I am so consumed by the enormity of the situation and the weight of my own emotions that I am unable to sleep and find myself struggling to stay awake even when I'm not trying to be.

To go to sleep my mind's too proud to bow out
Despite my exhaustion and my desire to give up and just go to sleep, I am too proud and too concerned about the situation to abandon the cause and rest peacefully.

While you were sleeping the time changed
Despite your own inactivity and lack of engagement, the world continued to shift and change, with time itself moving on and changing the nature of our reality.

All your things were rearranged
The world continued to change in profound and unexpected ways, with everything around you shifting and rearranging itself in order to accommodate these changes.

Your vampire mirrors face to face
You were faced with difficult and uncomfortable truths about yourself and your life as you looked into the mirror and saw yourself reflected back in stark relief.

They saw forever out into space and found you dreaming
Even as you were looking into these mirrors and facing your difficult truths, you remained caught up in your own dreams and unable to connect with the reality of your situation.

In black and white
The reality of the situation was difficult and stark, without any of the color and imagination that you usually associate with your life.

While it rained in all the colors of the night
Despite the stark and difficult nature of reality, there was still a sense of beauty and wonder to be found in the world around us, especially in the darker and more mysterious aspects of nature.

I watched the tv?s memories champion ships vanish to sea
The world was changing rapidly and unpredictably, with even the most stable and longstanding cultural institutions and signifiers falling apart and disappearing amidst the shifting tides of our reality.

Can it be my honey between you and me
Even in the face of all the world's chaos, there is still some small hope and intimacy to be found between two people who know and trust one another.

So I waited for the riddled sky to be solved again by Sunrise
Despite all the hardship, there is hope for the new day and a sense of possibility and wonder that comes with the dawn of a new day.

And I made a death soup for life
Even amidst the darkness and uncertainty of these times, there are still things we can do to come together and create something meaningful and nourishing for ourselves and those around us.

For my father?s ill widowed wife
Even in the midst of global tragedy and chaos, there are still small personal struggles and losses that we must grieve and mourn for.

Did you have that strangest dream before you woke
As you wake up from your long period of sleep, you feel disoriented and confused, unsure of what you were dreaming about or where you consciousness wandered while you were unconscious.

'Cause in your gown you had the butterfly stroke
Even amidst all of the chaos and pain of the world, there is still something beautiful and transformative within you, a part of you that can spread its wings and fly like a butterfly.

Did it escape you like some half-told joke
Despite the beautiful images and moments of hope you have experienced, there is always the possibility that these moments will slip away from you without being fully appreciated or understood.

When you reached for your plume of smoke
As you wake up and come to your senses, you reach out for something familiar and grounding, something that can help you make sense of the strange and transient nature of the world around you.

And it'll haunt you my honey bee
Despite your efforts to stay grounded and focused amidst the chaos of the world, there is still a sense of uncertainty and confusion that plagues you and makes it difficult for you to move forward confidently.

Anyone who's anyone has that same dream
Despite all of the chaos and confusion we all experience at times, there is still a sense of universality to our experiences and a connection that binds us together even through the most difficult moments.

Were you falling were you flying and were you calling
Even amidst all of the chaos and uncertainty of the world, there is still a sense of intense energy and possibility, with the future stretching out like an unbroken horizon before you.

Out or were you dying
Even though there is beauty and possibility within every moment, there is also the possibility of pain and loss, of death and decay.

But thank god you're up now let's stay this way
Despite all of the chaos and uncertainty of the world, there is still hope and a sense of possibility, especially when we join forces and come together to support one another.

Else there'll be no mornings and no more days
If we do not come together and work to support one another, the future will be bleak and uncertain, without any sense of possibility or hope.

'Cause when we?re dreaming the babies grow
Even as we sleep and dream of other things, the world still continues to move on without us, with babies growing up and developing in ways that we cannot comprehend.

The stars shine and the shadows flow
No matter how deeply we sleep, the world continues to turn and move on, with the beauty of the natural world surrounding us even when we are not paying attention.

Time flies the phone rings there is a silence
Despite our tendency to get caught up in our own thoughts and worries, the world continues on, with time moving forward at an ever-increasing pace and the phone ringing insistently in the background.

When everybody tries to sing
Despite all of the chaos and uncertainty of the world, there are still moments of beauty and connection to be found, especially when we come together to sing and make music in celebration of life.