Blooming Alone in Santa Barbara

Salt on the window

Morning on the hills

I came here for the blue and gold For bougainvillea on the

walls For strangers laughing on State Street Like they had never feared

a fall The palms all lean into the light The gardens open

without shame I keep my hands inside my coat And no one

ever learns my name

I want to open like the jasmine vine I want to trust

the day and let it find me

There is a warmth here just beyond my skin

Santa Barbara, teach my heart to bloom

Show me how the sea keeps making room Everybody glows like they

belong

I'm still learning how to sing along

If I can't reach them,

let the sunlight stay Till hope turns root beneath my doubt someday

Santa Barbara, hold me till it's true

Life can bloom in me the way it blooms in you

I watch the runners by the shore The dogs that race the

falling foam A couple dancing by the pier And somehow

I still walk alone But every rose along the path Keeps leaning

back into the sun

As if the earth has always known The lonely season still can

turn

Maybe I don't need a perfect door

Maybe one small light is enough Maybe the bloom begins before

Anybody sees the bud

Santa Barbara, teach my heart to bloom

Show me how the sea keeps making room

Everybody glows like they belong

I'm still learning how to sing along

If I can't reach them,

let the sunlight stay Till hope turns root beneath my doubt someday

Santa Barbara, hold me till it's true

Life can bloom in me the way it blooms in you (ooh) (ooh)

Tomorrow I might say hello

Tomorrow I might bloom