Babel Babble

Why can't you behave yourself?
Eat your greens, for goodness sake!
Don't let your father see your plate.
Don't look at me like that.

Eat your greens. For goodness sake,
stop talking, I'm not listening:
don't look at me like that.
I'm just getting by like this.

Stop talking? I'm not listening
to you, it's the others, you know.
I'm just getting by like this.
You can't hear them? Why not?

To you, it's the others, you know:
they count straight lines in Hebrew.
You can't hear them. Why not
listen with the inner ear?

They count straight lines in Hebrew
texts written on human skin.
Listen! With the inner ear
we can keep our balance.

Texts written on human skin
tell the secret stories. Read them,
we can keep our balance
if we keep the rope tight.

Tell the secret stories, read them
to your children who'll sit still
if we keep the rope tight
and they eat their greens.