Intro
Frost on the window, numbers etched in the glass
Grandmother's coat lining stitched with stamps from the past
Ravens on the wire before the bakery opened its door
She said count what you're given, never count what before
Verse
Dawn broke gray over the ration line, breath turned to smoke
Grandmother held her book like a psalm she woke to invoke
Stamped in blue ink, one loaf, one candle, one cup
Ravens on the gutter watched the whole street line up
She said hunger teaches patience faster than any priest
Sewed the extra stamps in her hem for the leanest feast
Coal stove coughing ash while the kettle sang thin
Six kids in one room, she stretched flour like it was sin
Butcher weighed the bone before he weighed the meat
Told her scraps was scraps but she made marrow sweet
Tin plates clattered like church bells calling the poor
Ravens counted heads better than the man at the door
She never begged, just budgeted grief into grace
Wore the same wool coat till it thinned to lace
Said the birds ain't scavengers, they're witnesses to will
Standing over the ones who learned starving and still
Chorus
Ravens over the ration line, watching who won't break
Every empty plate a lesson, every stamp a stake
Wings don't feed you but they teach you how to wait
Ravens over the ration line, that's how you learn your weight
Verse
Now I stand in a different line, county building, fluorescent hum
Same birds circle the parking lot, patient, waiting for crumbs
Grandmother's book is ash and paper, but the math she taught remains
Stretch the check to Sunday, save the extra for the rain
I split my plate three ways before I ever touch a bite
Learned to ration hope the way she rationed light
Scar on my knuckle from the factory line that closed
Wore that number like she wore her stamps, nobody chose
The cold don't care what year it is, it bites the same
Only difference is the paperwork, the acronym, the name
I keep her coat folded in the closet, wool still holds her shape
Ravens on my fire escape like they're checking the estate
Told my son what she told me, patience is a trade
Every debt gets paid in time, even the ones delayed
He asked why the birds keep coming, I said they remember more
They're counting who stood steady when the wolf was at the door
Chorus
Ravens over the ration line, watching who won't break
Every empty plate a lesson, every stamp a stake
Wings don't feed you but they teach you how to wait
Ravens over the ration line, that's how you learn your weight
Bridge
They used to say the ravens meant that death was drawing near
But grandmother said they're keeping score of who's still here
Every name they circled turned to something like a crown
Marginal in the ledger, legendary in this town
The line moves slower now but the will don't lose its shine
Legacy ain't the money, it's the way you hold the line
Outro
Frost melts different now but the birds still know my face
Grandmother's stamps turned stories, stories turned to grace
