Only Heat I Have

she came into the shop one day when snow was coming down
there weren’t a lot of customers, empty streets of town
just an old woman with an old style toaster in her hand
she laid it on the counter said “fix it if you can”

“well I can,” says I, “though it may take a day or 2 
but I’ll see what I can do and get it back to you”
she smiled a thank you smile, her eyes loving gaze
“it’s the only heat I have,” she said, “and it’s been cold for days”

it’s the only heat I have, the only heat I have
she smiled a thank you smile, her eyes loving gaze
“it’s the only heat I have,” she said, “and it’s been cold for days”

it’s a little coastal town by where the mountains come to rest
with the Irish sea in front of me and the landward to the west
you can watch the sunlight slanting, ‘neath the rolling patchwork sky
while family friends and strangers come and go to passing by

and I’d sit in window afternoons and raise a toast to it all
the heights that I ascended to and how long it took to fall
I was used to my loneliness, didn’t think I’d ever be surprised
until I met the young woman with the fire in her eyes

we could’ve been each other’s lovers, it happened pretty fast
but she was running after something that was just beyond her grasp
and I’d misread the fire, I thought it was for me
just goes to show what you don’t know is right where it supposed to be

she was the only heat I had, the only heat I had
she packed up all that fire and a little extra too
she was the only heat I had but she was only passing through

so now I think about the winter that lays across the land
and I think about the old woman with the toaster in her hand
and I think about the girl who was only passing through
i hope she found what she was looking for, some people never do

she was the only heat i had, the only heat i had
she packed up all that fire, she had some other place to go
but i gave up feeling sorry for myself a long time ago