This Café Keeps Changing Its

[Куплет 1] At seven, lena taps her spoon Like a conductor calling time The ferry clerk checks tide reports And circles every line A violin case leans by the door While mr. bell unfolds the news I steam the milk, i learn the names And find the day’s first tune [Алдынғы қайырма] One asks how the harbor’s doing One says the bus was late Then somebody laughs so hard The whole room joins the break [Қайырма] Good morning, this is our little show A hundred small hellos in a row You bring your stories, i’ll find the key We make a brand-new melody From the first poured cup to the noon-day sun Every face adds a line, every day’s begun Good morning, come on in and sing along This café keeps changing its song [Куплет 2] The baker’s kid draws racing boats On the paper by the till A nurse trades jokes with the chess-club man Who claims he’s learning still Two students argue over maps A florist counts the stems she sold I catch their rhythms as they cross And turn the chatter gold [Алдынғы қайырма] The ferry clerk calls “fair weather” Lena taps her spoon The violinist finds a phrase And someone hums it too [Қайырма] Good morning, this is our little show A hundred small hellos in a row You bring your stories, i’ll find the key We make a brand-new melody From the first poured cup to the noon-day sun Every face adds a line, every day’s begun Good morning, come on in and sing along This café keeps changing its song [Көпір] Some mornings bring a new face in A name i haven’t learned They hear the room become a tune And leave with something earned Tomorrow there’ll be different news New plans, a different joke I’ll keep the chorus loose enough For every voice that comes [Final chorus] Good morning, this is our little show A hundred small hellos in a row You bring your stories, i’ll find the key We make a brand-new melody From the first poured cup to the noon-day sun Every face adds a line, every day’s begun Good morning, come on in and sing along This café keeps changing its song [Аутро] Lena taps the spoon once more The ferry clerk heads out I hum the tune beneath my breath As the next hello rings out