Lyrics
[Verse 1] The last crew packed their plans away I took the stairs above the site And watched the western edges turn From brass to a deeper shade of light Below, the avenues kept time With buses threading through the blocks I knew each angle by its name Each beam that rose from those first chalk marks [Pre-Chorus] I drew these lines when all we had Was paper, patience, room to grow Now every window catches dusk And every floor has somewhere to go [Chorus] There it is, the shape we dreamed Standing tall where the old yards lay Every line i carried in my hand Has found its place in the city today And the next bright morning’s already there In the lives these walls will hold I can see tomorrow taking form In the skyline turning gold [Verse 2] A clinic lights its upper floors A young firm moves in down the block The library keeps one more level For all the plans we haven’t thought I hear the foreman laugh below He says the corner came out right I tell him, “we’ll know what it means When people fill it up with life” [Pre-Chorus] The drawing never showed the names Or how the streets would change their pace But someone’s going home tonight To a room we made a little space [Chorus] There it is, the shape we dreamed Standing tall where the old yards lay Every line i carried in my hand Has found its place in the city today And the next bright morning’s already there In the lives these walls will hold I can see tomorrow taking form In the skyline turning gold [Bridge] I used to think the work was done When every measurement agreed But cities keep revising plans With every child and every need So leave a little room to change Let sunlight find another way A good design is not a monument It’s a promise made for every day [Final chorus] There it is, the shape we dreamed Standing tall where the old yards lay Every line i carried in my hand Has found its place in the city today And the next bright morning’s already there In the lives these walls will hold I can see tomorrow taking form In the skyline turning gold [Outro] The lights come on, one floor at a time And the city keeps its plans in motion Tomorrow’s waiting in the lines I drew above the ocean
