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Family Swan Lyrics by Mecca Normal

The Family Swan

2002

Golden-eyed pigeons fly in pairs
Grey squeaklings
Linking space
"Swans mate for life,"
The old git on the news turns to the camera
For the last word
"life"
Even the wizened are media-savvy
Swan families sticking their beaks
Mounted on long thin necks
Into other family members’ business
The sickness of one means the rest
Won't go to fill their
Swan-bellies
No they'll stick together
Floating around until the poison kills
That bullet was outlawed years ago
Lead shell-casings litter the area
The damaging quotient can't be picked up
Can't be totally removed
With even the best of the finest-toothed combs
He was a family-swan
Dead
Bit the bullet
Heavy head hanging on a long limp neck
"It's hard on your mother
It's hard on your mother, you know."
In my head I say
(yes, you are hard on my mother)
He wants to shout out, “You're killing your mother! You're killing your mother again!”
Family-man tried to down a bottle of pills. Family-mother had to get farm-woman from next-door to come and get the pills out of his mouth. Flipping him over, cursing, like pulling on the fringe of a rug, caught in the vacuum cleaner
His lips tightened over dissolving pills -- white, cream, blue pills --tiny logos carved into them; tiny logos carved in the dissolving pills
"Are you trying to kill your mother?"
That was his crazy cry when at twelve, I got caught playing nicky-knocky-nine-doors. Seemed absurd
Mother passed us in the hall heading for her hot bath. For the first time I noticed, and wondered why a woman's ass is wider than a man's
Foolishly I'd asked, "How did mom get cancer?"
Turned out I was to blame. The answer:
"Having a child later in life and not breast feeding caused the cancer."
Oh, bitter pill. Bullet with a name on it. A tiny message carved into it; a tiny message carved in my dissolving heart
I think I'll go to my room now and set a spell
Please pass the smelling salts
When I moved
Away from their madness
Family-mother put on her tweed going-to-the-doctor suit
And came to my little attic apartment
She didn't say hello to my boyfriend
Sitting on the edge of my bed
She was there to inform me
That I would have to move home
My leaving had affected her sleep
Oh, now she's eighty, she has terrible nightmares
I prompt her to reveal them and
I learn that she's integrating me
Into the disasters she sees on TV
Family-man tells me a million terrible things
All at once one after another
My stature decreases
I become short and ugly again
Oh, my voice is hollow small
I can't do anything right
I am worthless
Hanging on
To blame
My thinking forms awkward words
To be twisted and thrown back
In my tiny 41-year-old face
Family-man sets me straight
"Your mother is going to live another twenty years
She's going to live to 100."
Family-man rants, family-man gets confused
"She's going to live another 100 years."
Oh, I wish he'd make up his mind
I wish he'd make up his mind
Either I'm killing her
Or she's never going to die
Family-man tells me a million terrible things
All at once one after another
Family-man sets me straight
Credits
Mecca Normal

Mecca Normal

About “Family Swan” by Mecca Normal

Read the complete lyrics to "Family Swan" by Mecca Normal from the album "The Family Swan" in 2002. 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 Rock.

"Family Swan" is performed by Mecca Normal. from the album "The Family Swan" in 2002 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 "Family Swan", explore more songs by Mecca Normal 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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Frequently asked questions

"Family Swan" is credited to Mecca Normal. Songwriting credits may include additional writers listed on the release; check the credits section on this page for linked collaborators.

"Family Swan" appears on "The Family Swan" in 2002.

Visit the Mecca Normal artist page at /artist/mecca-normal for biography, popular tracks, and links to more lyric pages.