The world is burning, and I′m not even sure how it started

I heard some person spilled the midnight oil onto the carpet

Of their apartment - others say an arsonist sparked itSome even swear that it's been there since Adam fell from the garden, but I

Know that′s a myth cuz I was in that crowded theater

When somebody shouted "fire" and no one around believed her

We were cave dwellers - sitting comfortably

Till I saw my shadow start to flicker on the seat in front of me

We watched the city being charred, and passed incinerated cars

Power lines alit like C-beams that glitter in the dark

And from above you could witness amber threads cover each district

On the CNN feed like they were written in the stars

They said riot vans were supplied to each fireman

And hired hand who tried and tried again without a fighting chance

So now we're out the frying pan and into the fire

And each day it's like I′m trapped inside a cigarette lighter

Since that night I′ve changed - I quit romantic interactions

Cuz it felt a little tactless to be having Tinder matches

Runnin' into old flames′d just be a drag if it happened

Kicked the habit - and don't forget the risk of getting gaslit

These days, Steam games I′ve just been avoiding

My temper is like embers and my blood's always boiling

Wearing flared jeans is sorta fine, blazers might be borderline

Sears in short supply, I hear they′re under-employing

Despite the deaths I'm abandoning rituals like candlelit vigils

I've never been less keen to use my Amazon Kindle

Our panicked officials may as well be a man with a fiddle

Who does nothin′ but stand in the middle of Rome as it burns

Their plans are all wishful, they say so many words

They′re understanding and civil, and then they vote to adjourn

Their only concern that they don't just totally shirk

Is when they open their purses for brokerage firms

I know, that′s absurd - and now we're seeing folks selling merch

For purchase with cutesy slogans that you can throw on a shirt

Like how adulting in the midst of an inferno′s the worst

I heard a talk show host's selling fire-themed frozen desserts

Meanwhile the radio reports conditions improving

Cuz look, this crematorium owner says business is booming

A former friend′s a flame skeptic, he says evidence is weak

Cuz you can't ever just believe the shit on MSNBC

I'm worried for him but I′ll be the first to admit

For a disbeliever, he′s certainly quick at burnin' a bridge

People′s takes have gotten blazing hot - and if you make a blog

You can say anything and get shared by a Facebook mom

Fake or not - like "fire alarms are government tracking machines"

Or "how to get the perfect smokey eye naturally"

Or "grow sage 'n′ rosemary for homemade potpourri

To mask annoying gas leaks while you Postmates groceries"

Okay, so can we just skip to the epilogue?

I'll even leave a nice review of it up on Letterboxd

Forget the plot, forget the scent of scorched pines and oak

Forget the sight of the horizon cloaked in plumes of rising smoke

Pretend we never saw the sky turn the colour of blood and honey

Like a flame spirit drunkenly swallowin′ up the country

As hundreds of tongues consume any inquisitive moth

Its voice a hiss when it talks, on trails of igneous rock

I thought fire was a gift till I saw it melt the ice caps

So Prometheus, i 'preciate it but send it right back

And now I'm rambling - shit, I′ve been lettin′ my mind stray

When I got chores to handle and there's still ash in my driveway

They say if you can′t stand the heat get out of the kitchen

But now my kettle's makin′ sounds, the fumes are cloudin' my vision

So till the ground is extinguished and we′ve doused the whole world in rain

I've got no choice but to learn how to live life in eternal flame