Spandau Variance

[Verse 1]
The plastic wrap on the pallets at Gleisdreieck
(a cappella for first two lines)
Flaps in the wind, a new kind of flag.
I map out the floor plan for the man I’m not yet,
In a unit with a view of the S-Bahn track.

[Chorus]
And this is the variance, the permit I never filed,
A demolition notice for a life we built.
Just stunned by the grace of your hand in my hand,
The unforeseen infrastructure.

[Verse 2]
Lena said, "It's just glass and aggregate" last September,
But I see the re-zoning, the public consultation phase.
I draft the polite email I will never remember
To the land-use committee of my coming days.

[Chorus]
And this is the variance, the permit I never filed,
A demolition notice for a life we built.
Just stunned by the grace of your hand in my hand,
The unforeseen infrastructure.

[Bridge]
The cold from the Spree on the Oberbaum Bridge
at three seventeen on a Tuesday.
Just particulates of what we are, settling.

[Outro]
The unforeseen infrastructure.
The right-of-way home.