From the recording Outsider in Perpetual Motion
Lyrics
Pebble In My Shoe
Verse 1
I first saw him ages ago, in the schoolyard in my teens
Like a shadow, he cut a lonely figure, a handsome but broken kid
He always walked next to the wall, eyes low like he was scared
I always wondered about his home, what was going on in that place
Once we bumped into each other, he was smoking behind the canteen
"Hey" the words fell from his mouth as he stood frozen at his feet
"Hey" I said, "How's it goin?"
He walked away, but his eyes haunt me to this day
Chorus 1
I'm worried about the pebble in my shoe
Upset with the fly circling my room
Cursing at the bumps ahead in the road
Complain about the weather when it gets cold
There's someone on a building ready to jump
But tell me really do we give a damn?
Unless it's a friend or someone we know
We just say "Oh boy" and go by our day
Go by our day
Verse 2
I next saw him three years down the line, in an alley in the middle of the city
Selling hot phones to passers by, beside him a bottle in a bag
His hair unkempt, his clothes a mess, he somehow managed a smile
"I'm doing well" he said, "I've found my way
"Don't you worry" and he rolled up a J
"Keep safe" I said, and walked away
Ridden with guilt, haunted by the sadness in his stare
Chorus 1
Verse 3
I last saw him sleeping in a box, his locks of hair caked in mud
Alarms started ringing in my head, something twisted in my gut
The place looked like a graveyard of needles, an asylum of lost souls
I had to go back again, desperate to help him
But when I went there the box was empty
'He's gone" he said, his toothless neighbour,
"Where" I asked, he just looked up towards the sky
Chorus 2
I won't be worried about the pebble in my shoe
I'll never mind 'bout the fly buzzin' in my room
I won't be cursing at the bumps ahead in the road
And what the hell, sometimes it does get cold
You see, hindsight is a road paved with guilt
We're so enamoured with the life we lead
But if there's any chance we could manipulate fate
Let's dare to take it, before it's too late...