Longing Amid Coils of Incense

[Intro]

[Verse 1]

A slender wisp of incense coils dusk ever deeper

Swallows skim the curtain's edge, softly coming and going

A rain of blossoms turns Qingming into an old dream

Yet the screen stands between us and a longing I cannot voice

[Pre-Chorus]

I entrust my messages to departing wings

They too lost their way toward a place that sends no reply

[Chorus]

A thread of incense cannot pass the door of longing for you

Even the finest breeze cannot blow this heart's devotion away

If fame on your distant travels makes you miss the time to return

Please remember someone longs for the closeness of everyday life

A thread of incense cannot pass the door of longing for you

May you hear a voice more real than applause

[Instrumental Interlude]

[Verse 2]

Night stretches the shadows of the courtyard trees

That bird kept singing until its strength was gone

I place the words that never reached you beneath the moon

Hoping they might find a light where they need not be misunderstood

[Pre-Chorus]

I entrust my messages to departing wings

They too lost their way toward a place that sends no reply

[Chorus]

A thread of incense cannot pass the door of longing for you

Even the finest breeze cannot blow this heart's devotion away

If fame on your distant travels makes you miss the time to return

Please remember someone longs for the closeness of everyday life

A thread of incense cannot pass the door of longing for you

May you hear a voice more real than applause

[Bridge]

I will not let a distant promise fill an entire lifetime

I won't call endless waiting the only form of deep love

If one day you are willing to slow your hurried steps

May you see that I too am walking toward a world of my own

[Final Chorus]

A thread of incense cannot pass the door of longing for you

Even the finest breeze cannot blow this heart's devotion away

If fame on your distant travels makes you miss the time to return

Please remember someone longs for the closeness of everyday life

A thread of incense cannot pass the door of longing for you

May you hear a voice more real than applause

[Outro]

The last trace of incense gently dissolves into the wind

I leave the window for the next dawn