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“Indian Boarding School: The Runaways” Lyrics by Louise Erdrich

1987

Home’s the place we head for in our sleep.
Boxcars stumbling north in our dreams
don’t wait for us. We catch them on the run.
The rails, old lacerations that we love,
shoot parallel across the face and break
Just under Turtle Mountains. Riding scars
you can’t get lost. Home is the place they cross.
The lame guard strikes a match and makes the dark
less tolerant. We watch through cracks in boards
as the land starts rolling, rolling till it hurts
to be here, cold in regulation clothes.
We know the sheriff’s waiting at midrun
to take us back. His car is dumb and warm.
The highway doesn’t rock, it only hums
like a wing of long insults. The worn-down welts
of ancient punishments lead back and forth.
All runaways wear dresses, long green ones,
the color you would think shame was. We scrub
the sidewalks down because it’s shameful work.
Our brushes cut the stone in watered arcs
and in the soak frail outlines shiver clear
a moment, things us kids pressed on the dark
Face before it hardened, pale, remembering
delicate old injuries, the spines of names and leaves.
Credits
Louise Erdrich

Louise Erdrich

About ““Indian Boarding School: The Runaways”” by Louise Erdrich

Read the complete lyrics to "“Indian Boarding School: The Runaways”" by Louise Erdrich in 1987. On Lyrks you can follow along with the full text, explore the artist's discography, and discover related songs. The track is often categorized under Poetry, Non-Music.

"“Indian Boarding School: The Runaways”" is performed by Louise Erdrich. in 1987 This page provides the full lyric text for fans who want to sing along, study the songwriting, or compare versions across releases. Lyrks organizes lyrics by artist and song slug so you can bookmark and share a stable URL. Music lyrics help listeners connect with emotion, narrative, and rhythm in a track. Whether you are learning English, researching a favorite chorus, or preparing for karaoke, having accurate line breaks and section labels (verse, chorus, bridge) makes the experience easier. We link to the official artist profile on Lyrks where available, including biography snippets, top songs, and chart placements when we have that data. If you enjoy "“Indian Boarding School: The Runaways”", explore more songs by Louise Erdrich using the links below. Chart and trending pages on Lyrks highlight what listeners are searching for this week. For copyright or correction requests, see our DMCA and contact pages.

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"“Indian Boarding School: The Runaways”" is credited to Louise Erdrich. Songwriting credits may include additional writers listed on the release; check the credits section on this page for linked collaborators.

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