Phish: Esther

It was late one fall night at a fairground near townWhen Esther first saw the Armenian manWho groveled toward her and stood by her sideWith a bucket that swung in his handHis grin stretched the folds of his pasty white cheeksAnd his lips hurled a dollop of murk on the curbAnd the lights from the rides showed a mischievous sparkleThat flashed in his hollow eyed stareHe said Little girl, you can chop off my legsAnd then peel off my socks if you want to.But Id rather you took this old puppet from meThat I hold in my pail as we speak.And he stood looking down at the innocent girlAnd she stared at the bucket bewilderedTil he lifted the doll for the young girl to seeAnd a giant smile grew on his faceShe saw the dolls eyes and she couldnt resistAnd she thanked the man quickly and ran to the churchAnd she burst through the door with puppet held highAnd a hush filled the chapel, and the people looked meanEsther tried in vain to pacify the mobQuibble grew to spat, to wrangle, then to brawlThe frenzied congregation struggled desperately to fetchThe pretty puppet snugly nestled deep in Esthers leather sackThrough the window of the church a storm began to rageAnd Esther knew the time had come to fleeShe scurried down the aisle toward the doorway in the distanceAnd out into the rainstorm where she felt she would be freeBut the wind was blowing harderAnd her skirt began to billowUntil finally her feet began to liftAnd she rose above the people and the housesand the chimneysAnd Esther and the doll were set adriftFloating higher over the hills, and the valleys and treetopstheyd flutter and glideSoaring and turning suspended on airWith the earth far below them theyd tumbleAnd dive through the cloudsAnd she began to plummet earthward till sheLanded in the nasty part of townShe glanced about the village sure to find the evil menWho rob and pillage in the darkest hour of nightNervously she fumbled for the pouch that held thePuppet on her rump.Feeling quite outnumbered Esther hid behindA nearby pile of lumber, where she waitedTill the dawnCause it would have been a blunder toSuccumb to a hoodlum on the prowlWhen the morning came, she wandered through the streetsAlong the chilly lake that lay beside the townAt last a peaceful moment, but she thought she heard a soundIt was an angry mob of joggers coming up to knock her downAs Esther stood and shook her headThe joggers were approachingAnd she knew she had no choice left but to swimAs the frosty water sank its bitter teeth into her hideShe tried to slide the heavy clothing from her skinNaked now she made her way toward the shoreWhen suddenly she felt a tiny tugging at her toe.And the puppet shed forgotten wrapped its tinyLittle arms around her ankle and wouldnt let her go.The waves seemed to open and swallow her wholeAs the doll pulled her down through the eerie green deepAnd the sound of the laughing old man filled her earsAs she drifted away to a tranquilAnd motionless sleep.