How to Embrace a Swamp Creature

How to Embrace a Swamp Creature^[1]

Lyrics

Got out of bed
Could not remember my own name
Condemned to walk the soil
Amongst all creatures wild and tame

Go where I go
Do what I must
Crawl starving on my belly
Licking up the dry dust^[2]

I see the light in your window
Ride the elevator to the sixth floor
Stand with my arms at my sides
As you open up the door

But I'm out of my element
I can't breathe
I'm out of my element
I can't breathe

Alone with your bathroom mirror
Try to get my head straight
Breathe on the glass and wait for it to clear
Clean slate

Meet up with you in the kitchen
Where the air is hot and dry
Open up all the faucets
Be fruitful and multiply^[3]

I stand where the flashing swords gleam^[4]
And I try to shake my head clear of the dream

But I'm out of my element
I can't breathe
I'm out of my element
I can't breathe

I start to sweat I can't cool down
I'm scared of all the strangers in this town
I try to tell you just why I've come
It's like I've got molasses on my tongue

I made it through town somehow
But who's gonna save me now

I'm out of my element
I can't breathe
I'm out of my element
I can't breathe

Footnotes

^{1. "This is a song about sleeping with somebody with whom you've just parted ways and with whom you later tell yourself you had no intention of sleeping on that day when you 'stopped by' to pick up your stuff, or to 'just say hi,' or whatever other excuse you feel like using. It's all good, y'all, you ain't gotta lie to me." — Heretic Pride press kit ↩}
^{2. A direct reference to the banishment of the serpent from the Garden of Eden. (Annotated TMG) "And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life." (Genesis 3:14, KJV)↩}
^{3. A reference to God's instructions to Noah. (Annotated TMG) "And you, be ye fruitful, and multiply; bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein." (Genesis 9:7, KJV)↩}
^{4. Given the other references to Genesis in this song, this is possibly a reference to the flaming swords guarding Eden from Genesis 3:24, also seen in San Bernardino. However, this could also refer to any swordfight. (Annotated TMG) ↩}